Man O' War Dreadnought Syrah 2013

If you're a world-class winery, you will be in possession of a few things, including a gifted winemaker and a well-placed vineyard. Man O' War have both of these. Their winemaker, Duncan McTavish is basically a grape-whisperer and the vineyard where the Syrah vines grow might as well have an X marking the spot on the map. It has a well-angled slope, which means the vine can catch the sun for the longest amount of time, and a cooling sea breeze, which means the grapes don't get hot under the collar. All of which leads to a breath-taking wine, with smoky peat notes draped over the overt blueberry and pepper aromas. Concentrated yet well-balanced, with vibrant acidity and a streak of almost salty minerality, it would be perfect with wood-fired pigeon.

Man O' War began planting vines on Waiheke Island in 1993. There are now 150 acres of vines planted by Man O' War vineyards which are split into 76 individual hillside blocks. The name Man O' War originates from the discovery of Waiheke Island. In 1769 Captain James Cook was on a voyage around the Islands of New Zealand; when Captain Cook caught sight of the Kauri trees growing on Waiheke Island he wrote in his journal that they would make ideal masts for the warships of the Royal Navy. Man O' War is a collection of cliffs, hillsides and beaches on the Eastern coastline of Waiheke Island.

With lots of wine-making experience under his belt from working in the vineyards of Burgundy, California, Germany and more recently Waipara Valley, Duncan McTavish has created wines that are reflections of his personality and the land.

The grapes for Dreadnought Syrah are grown on steep hillside vineyards and are carefully hand-harvested before delivery to the winery. The fruit is put across a sorting table before being de-stemmed and delivered to open vats for fermentation.

Following a four-day soak the Syrah is allowed to ferment with wild yeasts with plunging carried out twice daily. Following an extended time on skins (average 28 days in vat) the wines are gently pressed and taken straight to barrel for natural malolactic fermentation in the spring. The wines are racked once to a blend the following year before further maturing in tank for three months, prior to bottling with a coarse filtration.

Dreadnought Syrah is from Man O’ War’s steepest and most breath-taking hillside sites on beautiful Waiheke Island in Auckland Bay. The nose has a smoky peat character that provides a savoury edge to the overt blueberry and pepper aromas, with a mix of savoury and sweet reminiscent of the Northern Rhône. The palate is concentrated and rich but well-balanced, with vibrant acidity and a streak of almost salty minerality, and fine grain tannins. It would be perfect with wood-fired pigeon.