Decibel Hawkes Bay Gimblett Gravels Malbec 2018

Decibel Hawkes Bay Gimblett Gravels Malbec 2018French oak Chocolate caremel & fudge Boysenberry to blackberry Bright tannins The nose shows light hints of Turkish delight, chocolate caramel, fudge, and aromas of dusty smoke and wet stone. The pallet is lush on the approach turning into bright tannins showing graphite, lead and going from boysenberry to blackberry. The finish is firm and lingering showing a large range of food pairings with its supple and rich tannins reflective of the famous

• French oak
• Chocolate caremel & fudge
• Boysenberry to blackberry
• Bright tannins

The nose shows light hints of Turkish delight, chocolate caramel, fudge, and aromas of dusty smoke and wet stone. The pallet is lush on the approach turning into bright tannins showing graphite, lead and going from boysenberry to blackberry. The finish is firm and lingering showing a large range of food pairings with its supple and rich tannins reflective of the famous Gimblett Gravels soil.

Hawke’s Bay lies on the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The region enjoys dry summers with moderate, cool nights. This wine reflects a single vineyard Malbec which was grown on the famous Gimblett Gravels appellation. The Gimblett Gravels is demarked by specific soils laid bare from the constantly shifting Ngaruroro River over millions of years. The river’s last shift in 1867 left these amazing rocky soils, which combined with the slightly inland Heretaunga Plains’ weather, and classic viticulture techniques created a uniquely expressive Malbec.

Hand-picked in mid-April and transported in whole bunches from the vineyard to the close-by winery in small baskets. The fruit was then destemmed and only lightly crushed to allow the skins to slowly breakdown during the fermentation. The fruit was then cold macerated for 5 days on skins before slowly warming each of the 2 tonne fermenters and allowing a wild fermentation to kick in. Fermentation lasted 17 days before the wine was then macerated on skins again for an additional 18 days. The wine was then pressed to tank before put into mostly neutral French oak puncheuns (500 litre barrels) and with a small portion in neutral oak barriques. The wine was aged for 12 months in oak and then racked and prepared for bottling in late May 2019 and bottled in June 2019.