Church Road’s first Syrah release in the TOM series, their pinnacle winemaking. This 2015 wine is a deep, brooding, inky burgundy. Plenty of fleshy, bright fruit on the nose, with wood smoke, violet florals and savoury notes of olive tapenade and fennel. The palate is medium-bodied, quite light on its feet and has great balance for a structured wine with deep complexity. Perplexing. A get-to-know-you wine, with layers and branches that double back on each other, forming connections as you spend time with it.
It’s complicated – in a good way. The flavours of archetypal Hawke’s Bay Syrah are all present… with plum, cassis, bramble, blood orange and savoury mocha, tobacco, graphite, spiced with green peppercorn and star anise. There’s an extra percent to this version though, and I think the key to it is the tannins – supple, yet just tight enough to show an indication of the great future ahead. They round out the textural quality that defines the back of the palate and leads to the long, opulent finish. 95pts.
