Man O' War Ironclad 2017

Reviews and Accolades

Bob Campbell: 93/100 & & Top Rank. A blend of cabernet franc, merlot, petit verdot, cabernet sauvignon and malbec. Lighter and more forward than the previous vintage, with a pleasing savoury edge and greater floral influence. Quite an elegant wine that's surprisingly accessible now. Drink 2020 to 2024.

Cameron Douglas MS: 93/100. Really decent bouquet of dark berries and plums, blackberries and cocoa, violet and wood smoke, marmite and toasty wood. On the palate - weighty, rich, fruity, woody and tasty. Flavours reflect the nose with the plums and dark berries, dark brown spices of oak and toasty wood, a vanilla and clove layer. Firm tannins, medium+ acidity, great balance and length. A classic M-O-War wine. Drink now and through 2023.

Tasting Note

Epic lift, dark dense savoury and complex the perfume of the 2017 Ironclad unfurls from the glass. The palate is a similarly complex, a deep and mysterious character with layers of flavour from black berry, cassis, exotic spice, graphite, mushroom and a touch of salt liquorice…fresh in its acid profile and with a good firm handshake.

Aromas and flavours

Additional information

Type: Red wine

Varials: 37% Cabernet Franc, 21% Merlot, 16% Petit Verdot, 15% Malbec, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon

Suggested food match: Beef Wellington, Beef Carpaccio with crispy capers

Alcohol: 14% vol

Residual sugar:  <1 g/l

TA: 5.1 g/l

Bottle size: 0.75l

Notice: contains sulphites

Vineyard: Waiheke Island, New Zealand

Winemaking: Vintage 2017 began with a settled and dry Spring resulting in great flowering and a corresponding excellent fruit set. Dry drought like conditions continued into January providing terrific fruit flavours and tannins before a number of intense periods of rainfall, culminating in the arrival of Cyclone Debbie wreaked havoc with the vintage. Similar to 2016 careful attention to detail in the vineyard paid off in what was another challenging vintage! 

Composed of a selection of over 20 different vineyard sites planted in the five traditional varieties of Bordeaux the 2017 Ironclad is a careful selection of the very best fruit from the vintage. As with all our vineyards the fruit is carefully hand harvested and then sorted again in the winery before stem removal and fermentation of whole berries. Only pumped over twice a day the extraction is careful and can continue for over 30 days. Once the perfect balance has been achieved the wines are pressed directly to barrel and remain on gross lees for 20 months undergoing a natural malolactic in the Spring. After ageing the wines are then selected for blending into the Ironclad.

Cellaring potential: 2024

The name Ironclad: Ironclad is named in honour of the 19th Century warships characterised by the iron armour bolted onto their wooden hulls, much as iron courses through the veins of our warm clay hillside vineyards.

Closure: Screwcap

Produced and bottled by: Man O' War Vineyards, PO Box 1287, Shortland Street, Auckland 1140, New Zealand