| 2004 and 2005 Puriri Hills Range |
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| Written by Craig Thomson | |
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Puriri Hills, Clevedon. Vintage 2004 and 2005 Pre Release Tasting
The word ‘cult’ conjures up pictures of behind doors exclusivity which doesn’t sum up Puriri Hills at all. Judy Fowler obviously wants none of that mantle, but only to prove that great international styles can be produced in New Zealand to the very highest level. These wines are just about to be released to the market. The latest vintages will forge her reputation overnight, one that has been quietly and carefully planned for a decade. We were very fortunate to have been invited to taste at Puriri Hills. A couple of these notes are, we believe, the first ever published anywhere, a Kiwi Wine Fan Club “You heard it here first”.
Update: These wines have now been released and are available ex Cellar Door and in a couple of retail outlets. See Puriri Hills Website for details. Please also be aware that these wines were heavily decanted upon tasting. Drinking the 'Reserve' wines young is advised only if you perform a similar ritual! 2004 Puriri Hills "Estate" Merlot Cabernet Franc Malbec. A continuation on in the ascent of quality at this winery. The 2004 is dark ruby red, displaying a complex and forward nose of fruitcake and red currant. The palate is soft and inviting with good length. Again I am thinking ‘formal dinner claret’. Lovely intellectual style. You can see the style here – the warm fine tannins. Seems slightly more fruit forward than I remember previous vintages which may just be a reflection of the age that I am tasting it at compared with last weeks wines. Perhaps hang on to for a year. 95/109 points (Drink now-2009)  2004 Puriri Hills "Reserve" Merlot Cabernet Franc Malbec. This is a dark juicy style of red which in many ways has some similarities to a good vintage of Arahura’s Malbec. It is almost inky in colour. Nose is a little backward with dark boysenberry and blackberry type fruit. Very pristine. The structure is again finely boned, and elegant, warm coating ultra sleek tannins. Not an intense wine, idling and refined. Perhaps not quite the complexity of the 2005 but still extremely good. This is probably even better than the 2002 reserve. A wine to hold a while I think. 98/109 points (Drink 2010-2017+) 2005 Puriri Hills "Estate" Merlot Cabernet Franc Malbec. An amazingly complex nose with red currants, fruitcake and fresh spearmint undertones. Palate is yet again another step up from earlier vintages. Extremely stylish, nice level of fruit density which adds perhaps something missing from older vintages. This gives it gorgeous weight without being heavy. No issues with value for money with this wine. Super complexity, drinking well now. It really delivers and competes. 98/109 points. (Tasted again 10/3, super drinking now - 2011but be sure to decant and do not serve too cold)  2005 Puriri Hills "Reserve" Merlot Cabernet Franc Malbec. At this level I really start to look to compare to some of NZ’s greatest ever Bordeaux style reds. We have reached yet another level of astonishing quality. Very dark ruby in the glass. The nose is quite restrained but does give up the sought after red currant and fruitcake notes. The palate is sensational with added power on the palate and super complexity. Blackberry and red currant palate, with underlying layers of mint at just the faintest volume, gives this jaw dropping quality. The texture is all velvet and the structure so finely boned and controlled. This wine is sensual and intellectual, extremely refined and graceful. Worth every cent. This wine will cellar for a decade or more but is so interesting now, it will be hard to resist. 103/109 points. Click Here to read Dave's experience with this wine. Kiwi Wine Fan Club Cellar Pick (Tasted again 10/3, looks very good. Needs decanting if consumed early, otherwise a few years rest. Drink 2010-2019)
Click here for brief impressions of previous vintages from a quick trip we made to the cellar door a couple of weeks before we first tasted the 2004 and 2005 wines Puriri Hills Cellar Door is open Sat and Sun 11am - 4pm or buy yours via www.puririhills.co.nz
Pictured Above. Looking south towards the rural township of Clevedon which sits on the fringes of Auckland, just south of Waiheke Island. Puriri Hills sits on the Hills to the right of the valley floor. |
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 08 May 2008 ) |
Last week Puriri Hills had “latent potential”. It was “Clevedon’s answer to the Antipodean”. This week the potential has been very much realised. Puriri Hills has no time to wait to become a superstar. It has arrived. 
2005 Puriri Hills “Pope” Merlot Cabernet Franc. A wine styled on the great Cheval Blanc of Bordeaux, and was clearly a wine full of emotion for Judy. To compare the quality of this wine we have to look towards the great wines of St Emilion and Pomerol. This wine would compete to win without blushing in the highest arenas. Dark ruby red in colour. Compact and haunting aromas of super quality dark Swiss chocolate, Christmas cake, bran and dark fruits – very deep set aromas. The palate displays pristine and deep fresh blackberry and black plum underpinned by almost invisible coating tannins. It is slightly more backward, and slightly darker than the reserve. Again the palate shows an extra touch of weight but never is the wine forced or over extracted. The fruit is allowed to speak here, the structure is very finely boned, elegant, gentle fresh (perfect ripeness) and long. This is benchmark red wine of the absolute highest quality. This wine will not be cheap, but be assured it delivers at its price tag. I would expect this wine, if looked after, to age gracefully for more than a decade. Perhaps let it sleep for a year, but after that it will also be hard to resist young. Special occasion ‘claret’. Immaculate. 106/109 points. (Based on retasting the 05 Reserve, I would be looking to let this one unfold in the cellar for a few years before opening. Drink 2010-2021)
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