Winemaker Notes
The 2016 Homage opens as a beautifully aromatic wine with interwoven berry purity and oak sophistication. A floral, scented nose initially dominates with brambly, blackberry and licorice aromatics sitting in the background. The extra dimension of florality and seamlessness comes from increased vine age and the presence of whole-bunch fermentation. 2016 has produced a wine that is very powerful and fragrant with Italianate tannins. The wine shows great concentration and weight with a very crucial elegance. The structure is tight and tense which will allow the wine to age gracefully for many years (10+). Enjoy this wine with lamb or game
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is a beautiful red with so much cracked black-pepper and lavender character to the dark fruit on the nose and palate. Full-bodied yet vivid and driven with a clear line of acidity running through. Bright and delicious.
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Wine Enthusiast
This premium Hawkes Bay Syrah, housed in an extremely heavy bottle, is a muscular wine set for many years of cellaring. Nevertheless it delivers a level drinkability now, and is, hence the name, a clear homage to the Northern Rhône. It's highly savory and herbal, delivering heaps of tomato leaf and pencil lead amid brambly berries, dried flowers and a whiff of campfire smoke. Tannins are finely structured, wound neatly around pristine fruit, the spice lingering on the long finish.
Cellar Selection
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
At this stage, the 2016 Homage Syrah shows a bit of stone fruit (apricot) character, alongside raspberry fruit and subtle hints of pencil shavings. This wine has become increasingly refined over the years, and the newest release is downright elegant compared to the big bruising style when the wine was first launched. It's medium to full-bodied, with silky tannins and a lingering finish. Homage comes from the estate's oldest Syrah plantings on the Gimblett Gravels (1995 and 1999); it aged in predominantly new French oak barriques, although a portion spent time in a 50-hectoliter oval.
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Wine Spectator
Bold and stylish, with white pepper and dried lavender accents to the velvety blueberry and plum flavors. Hints of black licorice, Earl Grey tea and white truffle linger on the long finish. The polished tannins never get in the way. Drink now through 2033. 550 cases made, 100 cases imported.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
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.