Wine Reviews

The 2023 Le Sol Syrah hails from the Gimblett Gravels in New Zealand’s Hawke’s Bay. Aromatically, the wine leads with sweet roasted game, beetroot, pomegranate molasses, cocoa, crushed rocks and notes of peat. The tannins show the typical graphite quality that we have come to expect from this cuvée and this terroir, and one could even go so far as to say that the wine feels incredibly elegant, almost light. The fact that any wine was made in Hawke’s Bay after Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle made landfall on February 11, 2023, can be considered an immense achievement, never more so than when the wines are great, as this is. As always with Le Sol, exercise patience; you will be rewarded. 13% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

The 2023 Chardonnay is lean and flinty on the nose, with notes of white peach, green apple, freshly picked curry leaf and preserved lemon rind. In the mouth, the wine is very good, behaving exactly as the nose has laid out, with mineral phenolics and sleek length. 2023 was the year of Cyclone Gabrielle, which made a catastrophic landfall on the February 11, bringing widespread destruction. 12.7% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

A pinot noir with a backbone of fine tannins that give it freshness and form. It’s medium-bodied with dried strawberry and raspberry and orange undertones. Firm and silky texture with a tight finish. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Impressive syrah with raspberry and blackberry, with hints of spice and dried flowers. Medium-bodied with a dense and superbly rich finish. So balanced and polished. Lasts for minutes. Hints of lead pencil and cracked pepper at the end. Terrific syrah. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

A well-made Bordeaux blend with black currant, chocolate and light coffee bean undertones. It’s medium-bodied with polish and candor showing the quality of the merlot and cabernets in the stone soils of Gimblett Gravels. Pretty now but would improve with age. Drink or hold. Screw cap.