A highly rated New Zealand Cabernet Sauvignon from Hawkes Bay, featuring dark fruits, herbs, and chocolate notes, with great ageability.
Producer
Villa Maria
Region
Hawke's Bay
Country
New Zealand
Varietal Composition
90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 2% Malbec
Specifications
2018
Vintage
2043
Drink By
14
%
ABV
Vinification
Grapes come from 25ish year-old vines aged in 225 liter French oak barriques (60% new) for 20 months
Occasional wine note
New Zealand has made quite the name for themselves with their fantastic Sauvignon Blancs and Pinot Noirs, but there is a small plot of land in Hawkes Bay where the gravel soils are perfect for growing Cabernet Sauvignon (the same soils found in Bordeaux's "Left Bank"). We had to sample this highly rated representation and it does not disappoint. Dark fruits, herbs, and hints of chocolate. This one's a hidden gem and has some great ageability if you want to lay it down. If you open it now, let it open for a bit to enjoy it at its best.
What experts say about this wine
95
/
100
Wine Enthusiast
Villa Maria's top red, a Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant Bordeaux blend, is named for the Maori word for gravel, referring to its famed Gimblett Gravels soils. This is a wine made for the long haul although even now, with ample time open in bottle or decanter, reveals finesse and character. The fruit is dark and fleshy with a spine of leafy green herbs, violet, tomato stem and baking spice. The palate is satiny yet toned and elegant, with linear, taut tannins, and currently quite a lot of oak influence. A worthy addition to any red-lover's cellar. Drink 2025–2045.
94
/
100
Wine Advocate
The 2018 Ngakirikiri is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot and 2% Malbec, all aged in 60% new French oak for 20 months. Despite the barrel regime, the concentrated fruit easily comes through, offering up pristine aromas of cassis and plum, later accented on the finish by hints of dark chocolate and vanilla bean. Richly concentrated and velvety in texture, with a long, plush finish, this medium to full-bodied wine should drink well for over a decade.
pairing recommendation
Red Meat
Black Pepper
Peppers
Hard Cheese
Mushroom
95
2018 Villa Maria Ngakirikiri 'The Gravels'
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