Tasting Notes
First nose from bottle and glass is freshly cut oak; label says 18 months in new French oak barriques, and it sure smells like it! Some spice, some green pepper, vanilla and smokiness from the oak, but far too much oak. Left the bottle open for hours and hours and hours in the hopes that it would mellow, but it never did. This wine was far too over-oaked; tasted like a freshly sawn oak board from the sawmill. The wine was recommended to me at my local wine store from the son of the owner of the winery, and he promised that if I didn't like it I could get my money back. I really should have taken him up on that, but I finished the bottle, so ... ! Although there was some blueberry as well as some hints of fresh tobacco and licorice coming through later, the fruit never came through the oakiness. You could tell there was quality there, which is why I did not rate it less than 80, but the oak was simply too, too much.
(Click here for an explanation of our ratings ...)
Our Rating: 80
Would we drink it again? 
No, though we would like to try some of their other efforts.
Would we buy it again?
No, of course, but again we would like to try some of their other vintages and blends.
Puriri Hills makes blended red wines inspired by the wines of Pomerol and St Emilion in Bordeaux. Viticultural advice in 1996 indicated that about 15 acres of the 93 acre property were well suited to traditional Bordeaux varieties, particularly merlot and cabernet franc.
The site has a micro-climate and soil profile similar to that of nearby Waiheke Island, which already has a reputation for producing excellent red wines.
In 1997, the first four acres were planted in merlot and cabernet franc. The following year a further half acre was planted in malbec. In 2000 half an acre of cabernet sauvignon was added to balance out the blend. 2001 saw the addition of another half acre of cabernet franc. The newer cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc plantings are top Bordeaux clones of which our planting is one of the first commercial plantings in New Zealand.
The vines are hand tended and hand picked. Sustainable viticultural practices are followed as closely as possible. The wine is fermented in open topped fermenters, hand plunged and aged in 60-80% new French oak barrels. The wines are barrel aged for 18-22 months and further bottle aged for at least six months before release.
About the Auckland region
Henderson, Kumeu and Huapai to the northwest of Auckland's city centre, are the traditional winemaking districts of the Auckland region. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chardonnay are the most popular varieties here although Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and other white varieties are also planted.
Auckland's soils are mainly shallow clays over hard silty-clay subsoils or sandy loams. Vineyards are mostly planted in pockets of flat land on the drier east coast or in the shelter of western ranges.
In the early 1980s Waiheke Island, in Auckland harbour, was established as a fashionable district for the production of high quality red wines based on Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Matakana, on the east coast about one hours drive north of Auckland city, has also earned an enviable reputation for Cabernet Sauvignon and has since undergone a very rapid expansion in both red and white wine production.
Auckland's most recent premium wine district, Clevedon, has established small pockets of vines in the rolling farmlands about half an hour south of the city.
