Sileni Hawkes Bay Semillon 2000
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
In ancient Greece the Sileni were companions of Dionysus, the god of wine, vineyards and theatre. When there was something to be celebrated, the Sileni were always on hand to encourage enjoyment of delicious food, great wine and social interaction. Named in their honour, Sileni Estates produces a range of wines from Hawke's Bay and Marlborough, made to be great collaborators with a talent for enhancing flavors and textures.
Sileni Estates is one of the largest family-owned wine producers in New Zealand, with an extensive portfolio of internationally acclaimed wines, which are exported to 82 different markets around the world.
Their range of award-winning wines includes the very best Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah from Hawke's Bay, as well as Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough.
Sémillon has the power to create wines with considerable structure, depth and length that will improve for several decades. It is the perfect partner to the vivdly aromatic Sauvignon Blanc. Sémillon especially shines in the Bordeaux region of Sauternes, which produces some of the world’s greatest sweet wines. Somm Secret—Sémillon was so common in South Africa in the 1820s, covering 93% of the country’s vineyard area, it was simply referred to as Wyndruif, or “wine grape.”
An eclectic region on the east coast of the North Island, Hawkes Bay extends from wide, fertile, coastal plains, inland, to the coast range, whose peaks reach as high as 5,300 feet. While the flatter areas were historically more popular because they are easier to cultivate, their alluvial soils can be too fertile for vines. In the late 20th century, the drive for quality led growers to the hills where soils are free-draining, limestone-rich and more suited to producing high quality wines.
Over the passing of time, the old Ngaruroro River laid down deep, gravelly beds, which were subsequently exposed after a huge flood in the 1860’s. In the 1980s growers identified this stretch, which continues for approximately 800 ha, and named it the Gimblett Gravels. The zone has proven to be ideal for the production of excellent red wines, particularly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah.
Today the area takes well-earned recognition for its Bordeaux blends and other reds. Expressive of intense stewed red and black berry with gentle herbaceous characters, Gimblett Gravels wines are suggestive of their cool climate origin, and on par with other top-notch Bordeaux blends around the globe.
Chardonnay is the top white grape in Hawkes Bay, making elegant wines, strong in stone fruit character. Sauvignon blanc comes in close behind, notable for its tropical, fruit forward qualities.