Bay syrah takes four trophies

DELIGHTED: Matua winemaker Greg Rowden has created a four-trophy syrah from Hawke's Bay-grown grapes. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

There has been more prestigious trophy success for Hawke's Bay produced wines at the International Wine Challenge in London with grapes sourced from Waimauku-based Matua Wines' Bridge Pa vineyard creating a four-trophy winner.

The winery's flagship syrah, the Matua Single Vineyard Hawke's Bay Syrah 2014, pipped all other syrah wines at the event to take home the International Syrah Trophy, New Zealand Red Trophy, Hawke's Bay Syrah Trophy, and New Zealand Syrah Trophy.

A delighted chief wInemaker Greg Rowdon said that Matua's Single Vineyard Hawke's Bay Syrah has had a history of success at international shows.

He said the 2014 was only the third vintage produced Matua had made a single vineyard syrah.

"And it consistently performs beyond our expectations at wine shows," he said.

The 2013 vintage had set up a winning path after making a clean sweep of trophies across New Zealand's three major wine competitions, winning Champion Wine of the Show and Champion Syrah at the 2015 New Zealand Royal Easter Show, Champion NZ Syrah and Champion Shiraz/Syrah at the 2014 New Zealand International Wine Show and Champion Exhibition Red Wine at the 2014 Air New Zealand Wine Awards. "Winning four trophies in London at the IWC takes things to the next level," Mr Rowden said.

"We only make our single vineyard wines in small quantities from hand-selected fruit parcels from our best vineyards - they are like our babies so it's great to see them being so well received internationally."

Mr Rowden said syrah was not a variety New Zealand was widely known for producing so it was rewarding to be able to "put our Hawke's Bay syrah wines on the map".

The syrah fruit is sourced from the red soils of the Matheson Vineyard in Bridge Pa with bunches thinned to maximise concentration, gently de-stemmed with a large component of whole berries, and then fermented in French oak cuvees.

The wine then underwent post fermentation maceration for several days and was matured in French and American oak.