2010 New Zealand

2010 was a very fine growing season at Churton with small berries that ripened evenly. Certainly there is a wealth of fruit on the palate, a mix of deep strawberry with some black cherry notes, and an excellent long finish. As always with Churton it is in a classical, almost savoury style, without recourse to overtly sweet fruit.
Jasper Morris MW, Wine Buying Director, June 2013

The original William Murdoch’s grandson, Brett W Murdoch is the current owner of this estate. Located in the middle of the famous Gimblett Gravels wine district in Hawkes Bay, the vineyards are farmed organically while the wines are made by Hayden Penny under the watchful eye of Jenny Dobson, consultant winemaker.

This is cool-climate Syrah, very much along the lines of a Northern Rhône red. Aromas of black cherries are followed by crunchy bramble fruit and black pepper on the palate. The wine is fresh and herbaceous with a gravel minerality, a reflection of its origins in the premium sub-region of Gimblett Gravels in Hawkes Bay. Crisp and elegant, this is a fine example of a subtle, restrained New Zealand Syrah.

Our friends at surveyor Thompson have produced a first rate wine in 2010 after a fine warm summer and early autumn. It displays an attractive medium deep colour, some lovely spice here, with thyme and rosemary notes. Juicy fruit in the middle, some savoury elements adding texture to the back, long and concentrated.


The grapes were hand picked into six very distinct lots and fermented separately.35% whole bunch on average for texture and extraction of more tannin. Indigenous yeast was used to ferment the wines to dryness the wines were hand plunged three times a day. The wines spent a total of 29 days on skins on average, to extract structure, colour, aromatics and finesse. Maturation took place in 225 litre French oak barriques of which around 35% were new 3 year air dried French oak and the remainder one and two years older.

Te Mata Estate is New Zealand's oldest winery, dating from the early 1890s.  Te Mata is best known for its Bordeaux blend, ‘Coleraine’. This is widely regarded in New Zealand as the country’s greatest red wine.  It has all the richness one would expect from the New World but with an Old World savouriness and poise

The Coleraine 2010 has a youthful dark crimson colour and displays Coleraine’s gorgeous floral aromas, together with macerated blackberries woven with graphite and thyme. The palate is pure and very precise, building in intensity, with a long fine tannin structure providing great length. A blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and 6% Cabernet Franc, it will continue to develop in bottle and provide great enjoyment up to 15 years from harvest.