Esk Valley Estate Gimblett Gravels Merlot / Malbec / Cabernet Sauvignon

Description

Esk Valley Estate Gimblett Gravels Merlot / Malbec / Cabernet Sauvignon is a superb red wine blend from the Hawke’s Bay wine-growing region New Zealand’s North Island. Many people consider the Gimblett Gravels wine growing area within Hawke’s Bay to be one of the very best locations for growing red grapes in New Zealand.

Esk Valley Estate started trading under the Esk Valley name in 1987, having been an established wine company since the 1930’s. It is located in the heart of Hawke’s Bay. Esk Valley is considered a boutique winery and is unique in that many of the techniques used to craft its award-winning wines are dictated by the winery itself. They still use their old concrete vats and the layout of the buildings and the absence of modern technology mean the winemakers at Esk Valley have had to make wine in a simple, honest, hands-on way.

Esk Valley Estate Gimblett Gravels Merlot / Malbec / Cabernet Sauvignon is made from a blend of grapes grown in the Gimblett Gravels sub region of Hawkes Bay. These free draining shingle soils have excellent drainage and low vigour. Esk’s vineyard sites are close planted and yields per vine are kept low to maximise fruit quality. The individual vineyard parcels are de-stemmed to the fermenters and inoculated with selected yeast strains. Once active, the ferments are hand plunged to gently extract all available tannin and colour from the skins. After a period on skins, the wines are pressed to barrel and tank for malolactic fermentation. The individual varietal and vineyard parcels are aged separately in barrel for 12 months in French oak barriques (10% new) before being blended and bottled.

Esk Valley Estate Gimblett Gravels Merlot / Malbec / Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 is a blend of 27% Merlot, 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Malbec