Description
Established in 1896, Te Mata Estate remains family owned, producing internationally recognized wines exclusively from its Hawke’s Bay vineyards. The Estate’s ownership varied frequently until John and Wendy Buck acquired it in 1978. John and Wendy instigated a twenty-year development program, which commenced with the restoration of the original winery building and the replanting of all of the original vineyards, as well as the acquisition of new vineyard sites.
The range of temperature and soil types, allied with the rainfall band between 650-850mm, create conditions to produce high quality wines of a classic range akin to those of coastal, central and northern France. Te Mata wines are similar in weight and balance but with unique lifted floral and fruit aromas.
Te Mata winery has been ranked ‘Top Winery in New Zealand’ evidenced by the consistent quality of the Coleraine and Awatea Cabernet Merlot wines, the Bull Nose Syrah and the Elston Chardonnay.
About this wine: First planted in 1990, the Bullnose vineyard’s old red iron soils produce Te Mata Estates finest syrah. This wine has distinct floral and spice aromas, rich flavours of plum, rasberry and ablackberry with a velvety texture. The wine is named Bullnose after an early Morris Cowley car, which was nicknamed Bullnose due to its distinctive radiator. The bull emblem that appears on the wine label is drawn from the car’s radiator crest.
Separate parcels of fully ripened syrah grapes were hand harvested from Te Mata Estate’s Bullnose, Hotspur and Isosceles Vineyards between 26 and 30 March 2020.
The individual lots were each destemmed and given a traditional warm-plunged fermentation. The resulting wines underwent extended maceration on skins before pressing and then a secondary malolactic fermentation. The separate wines were then run to a mixture of new and seasoned French oak barriques for 15 months’ maturation. During this time, they were regularly topped and racked, before blending and then bottling in December 2021.
From the winemaker: “A luminous deep magenta. Immediately floral with fresh raspberry, black-cherry syrup, spiced plums and oriental peonies, all bursting from the glass.
There’s cinnamon, nutmeg and earth, with mineral, ripe boysenberry and black berry-fruit on the palate adding presence and sustained, subtle power. Fine-grained tannins carry the palate on and on. Luxurious. Resplendent. Bullnose Syrah’ 20 is our most beautiful Bullnose.”
98 points, Bob Campbell “Deep, purple-tinted syrah with a wonderfully fine-grained, perfectly-pitched texture. Flavours include cassis, plum, dark berries, anise, black pepper, floral and red rose together with spicy oak. A very impressive wine.”
95 points, Cam Douglas MW “A brilliant deep purple hued and polished appearance with a palate filled with minerals of clay and stone, violets and black currants, dark cherry and fleshy baked raspberry fruit, suggestions of milk chocolate before the spices and toasty qualities of new French oak fold in. Tannins are in abundance with a polished texture, acidity carries flavour, intensity, flavour and mouthfeel. A delicious wine, lengthy, dry and complex. Best drinking from late 2023 through 2030.”
RRP $98 **Our Special Price $72.99 when you buy 6 or more of this wine**
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