Te Kahu Gimblett Gravels Vineyard 2019
Trade Tools
New Zealand
The fruit for Te Kahu is grown in the Hawkes Bay Gimblett Gravels Vineyard, which enjoys one of the warmest, driest, most sundrenched climates in New Zealand. Stony gravel in the soil forces the vines to fight for water, giving the grapes a particular vibrancy.
Harvest Note
The 2019 growing season was wet up until Christmas, then dry and warm through the ripening period.
Tasting Note
Deepest crimson red. Brooding aromatically with notes of cassis, black olive, dried tobacco and the faintest hint of roasted hazelnut. The palate is alive with rich, ripe red to black fruit, with a midpalate that speaks volumes to the warm and long ripening period. A perfect example of medium-bodied Bordeaux style blends from the Gimblett Gravels.
Technical Data
GRAPES: 54% Merlot, 27 %Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, 7% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot
APPELLATION: Hawkes Bay
PH: 3.66
ACIDITY: 5.82 g/l
ABV: 13.5%
AGING: Aged for 17 months in 20% new French oak barriques before fining and filtering
Unique Selling Points
- The warmest vineyard area in New Zealand
- Reds from Gimblett Gravels have a rich, ripe and elegant style with fine tannins
I am fortunate to lead an extraordinary group of people who want to be part of creating something truly magnificent that successive generations can admire and enjoy for years to come. I love our great estates and feel a strong connection to their complexities and subtleties.
Julian Grounds, Winemaker
About the Grape
Merlot
Merlot makes plump, succulent wines to drink young or opulently massive wines for aging. Has silky, blackberry and currant fruit, with spice, earth, tobacco and chocolate notes, and soft tannins.
Cabernet Franc
Cabernet Franc usually shows tart red cherry and wild currant aromas and flavors with an herbal, spicy character. In the Loire, esp. Chinon and Saumur-Champigny, this grape shows firm minerality.
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon is adaptable to various growing conditions, and is known for its low yield and late ripeness. It generally produces full-bodied wines with substantial acidity and tannins.
Malbec
Well-made Malbec is a dark, perfumed wine with rich, blackberry and damson plum fruit, aromas of violets and tobacco, and ripe, juicy tannins. In France, may be mineral, structured and austere.
