Community Tasting Note

• evanqian wrote: 87 points

  December 28, 2013 - Classic NZ Wine Trail - Martinborough (Martinborough): unusual red blend: 60% Merlot, 30% Syrah and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, though it's been there for many years.
  
  dark red/purple. still young. intense flavours. strong Syrah pepper spice and Merlot dark fruits. CS contributes powdery tannins as backbone in the quite grand but weird structure. heavy and powerful, long woody finish with chocolate and vanilla. but I think there is less harmony among different flavours, tastes just like a quick mixture. reluctant to say it's balanced, maybe this style is too weird to be my cup of tea.
  
  Alc 13.5% , TA 6.0, pH 3.5
  
  Bob Campbell 90(Apr 2013) 93(Jun 2014), Sommelier 2014 Gold, Michael Cooper 4.5 stars
  
  AP: 4/5; AR: 12/15; Palate: 14/20; overall: 3+4/10
  TOTAL: 87+/100

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2 Comments

• benjaminpaul commented:

  9/17/14, 6:48 PM - Perhaps drunk too young?

• evanqian commented:

  9/17/14, 7:34 PM - @benjaminpaul I tasted it at Ata Rangi cellar door, a quick flight with very friendly staff. tasted like not melt at all, but still can feel the big structure and the potential. Merlot-Syrah blend is not typical in old world, reminders me some low-quality Vin de Pays, this one hardly changed my impression :)
  
  of course, it might be improved on aging, so curious about it. after all, I highly respect Ata Rangi on their classic PN.

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