I caught up with Craggy Range Chief Winemaker Matt Stafford recently in Melbourne and tasted through the 2014 Prestige Collection wines with him. Two of these wines, Le Sol (syrah) and Sophia (Bordeaux-style blend), have established themselves at a consistent level of high quality in a well-groomed, highly-polished and lavishly packaged kind of way. I like them.
But the surprise of the tasting was the third wine, Aroha, their top bottling of pinot noir. Now I know I am not alone in this when I say that Craggy Range has made many great wines in their almost 20 years since establishing in 1997, but pinot noir has struggled to reach the same heights of quality and success as many other wines in the range. They’ve made good but not great pinots.
I always attributed it to the fact that they had a primary focus on Bordeaux reds and had accordingly established their winemaking operations in Hawke’s Bay. The pinots sometimes tasted a bit too big, too much like a dry red wine and not enough like pinot noir.
You can imagine the surprise then, when I sat down and tasted these three reds and was blown away by the 2014 Aroha Pinot Noir. A wine that cuts to the very heart of all that is great about pinot, the fragrance, the detail, the web of fine yet powerful tannins and expressive flavoursome fruit.
Here was the Craggy Range pinot I had been waiting for and, tasted alongside two magnificent fuller-bodied reds, it excelled. So much so that it is my top rated wine of the three.
Here are my notes and join me in welcoming Craggy Range to the elite ranks of New Zealand pinot noir.
Photo:
Craggy Range Pinot Noir Martinborough Aroha 2014
This is the best pinot Craggy Range has released to date. Looks lively and fresh with a wealth of cherry and purple berry fruits on the nose, a lick of sappy bright berry fruits, the inclusion of whole bunches has added a layer of more fragrant and attractive perfume to this wine, the oak is assertive but settled into stride, there’s plenty to like here. The palate has an innate sense of lightness with concentrated flavors, a stylish contrast of detail and light and shade, tannins are precisely defined and there’s a core of bright red cherry flavor that holds crunchy and fresh with a vibrant and energetic surge up through the finish. Drink now. 96 points.
Craggy Range Syrah Gimblett Gravels Hawke’s Bay Le Sol 2014
There’s an incredible array of pepper and spice in this top tier syrah, this is a very exotic edition of Le Sol, really showy and complex. Smells of graphite, ripe plum and blackberry and there’s a brooding aromatic core of black fruits and dark minerally aromas. The palate delivers a wealth of liquorice and ripe black cherry and plum flavor, tannins are fine and supple, gently grippy and deliver a bright, lithe and juicy finish. Twists to redder flavors as it closes, light and shade, detailed and lively. Very approachable now, best from 2020. 95 points.
Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Hawke’s Bay Sophia 2014
A blend of 61% merlot, 20% cabernet sauvignon and 19% cabernet franc, this has an impressive floral, violet-like nose, plenty of saturated mulberry and blueberry fruits, some wet concrete and stony notes, as well as chocolate and a mellow cedary oak layer. The palate has fine, smooth and glossy tannins, builds well and has an expansive feel, still rising through the finish for now, concentrated wine, saturated with dark fruit flavors and a long, classy finish. Give this until 2020. 94 points.
– Nick Stock
Nick is a renowned Australian wine writer, author, presenter and filmmaker who reports on his worldwide wine tasting experiences for JamesSuckling.com.
