Te Mata Coleraine 2023

Reviews

One of New Zealand's "Grand Cru" (Tipuranga Teitei o Aotearoa). Critics about Te Mata Coleraine 2023:

Erin Larkin, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: 98/100. This cuvée is a selection of the best from each vintage. In 2023, the strongest performer was the Cabernet Sauvignon. The elevation in all aspects of this wine from the already tremendously impressive Awatea is significant. With raspberry, iodine, crushed shells, nori, pressed flowers, new lead pencil, tobacco, bramble and cassis, it is magnificent. I love this wine.

James Suckling (JamesSuckling.com): 97/100. This really changes in the glass with blackcurrants, kelp, umami, graphite, fresh mushrooms and roses. Iodine and lemon rind as well. Extremely expressive. It’s medium-bodied with lovely finesse and fine, caressing tannins that are very long in the finish. Firm yet open-grained tannins. Needs time to come together but already a beauty. 80% cabernet sauvignon, 15% merlot and 5% cabernet franc. Best after 2028.

Christina Pickard, Wine Enthusiast: 97/100. 2023 will forever be remembered in the North Island as the year of Cyclone Gabrielle. Fortunately, Te Mata's vineyards escaped relatively unscathed. In fact, Coleraine, the historic estate's top wine, is singing. Unmistakably Cab aromas of blackcurrant, dried mint, pencil lead and rhubarb are out in full force from first sniff. The palate shows precision and balance with a beautiful rush of tangy, current-y acidity tempered by fine, dusty tannins. It's perfumed and svelte with charm and appeal now, but a promise of even greater things to come. —

Tasting Note:

A regal brilliant magenta hue, with blackcurrant and brooding complexity on an immensely concentrated palate. Raspberry, white flowers, soy, and espresso, arise on driftwood smoke, creating a fresh, elevated, coastal sensation, in an intense, tannin-rich, sculptured wine that's captivating and irresistibly endless. This is Coleraine essence - a majestic statement of a place, a time, and a lineage.

Aromas and flavours:

Additional information

Varietals: 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc.

Food match: Rare roast beef, wagyu steak, or slow-cooked lamb shoulder with rosemary.

Vineyards: Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. Coleraine ’23 is an assemblage of the finest wines produced from distinct plots within Te Mata Estate's oldest vineyards first planted in 1892. Hand harvested between 31 March and 17 April 2023.

Winemaking: Each parcel of grapes was destemmed before a traditional warm-plunged fermentation and extended maceration on skins. The resulting wines were then run to predominately new French oak barrels for 17 months’ maturation. Throughout this time, they were regularly topped and racked. The assemblage was made in October 2023 and the finished wine was bottled in December 2024.

The name Coleraine: Coleraine derives its name from the Coleraine vineyard, home of John and Wendy Buck of Te Mata Estate. John’s late grandfather was born in Coleraine in Northern Ireland and the name has been maintained through the family home to the wine. A single vineyard wine until 1989, Coleraine is now an assemblage of the finest wines from Te Mata’s oldest vineyards.

Alcohol: 13.5% vol

Residual sugar: dry

Notice: Contains sulphites, egg.

Cellaring potential: 2045+

Closure: Cork

Bottle size: 0.75l

Produced and bottled by: Te Mata Estate, PO Box 8335, Havelock North, Hawkes Bay 4157, New Zealand

On Coleraine

• "This highly collectible red is snapped up every year it is released." -  Bob Campbell MW, Kia Ora Magazine, June 2018 
• "Te Mata Estate Coleraine has won well-deserved iconic status for a string of elegant and complex wines that first appeared in 1982, blazing a trail for others to follow." -  Bob Campbell MW, The Real Review, June 2018 
• "If there was Kiwi wine aristocracy, Te Mata would be it. Nestled in the foothills of the Te Mata heritage zone, they make some of the best wines in the country. Independent, family-owned, exclusively Hawke’s Bay, and committed to making premium wine on site." - Cuisine Wine, 2017 
• "New Zealand’s Grange equivalent, only Coleraine comes from one place, is much cheaper, and to my tastes, is significantly better and more interesting." - Gary Walsh, The Wine Front, Australia. March 2017 
• "The legendary cabernet sauvignon and merlot blend of NZ. New Zealand’s Sassicaia." -  James Suckling, jamessuckling.com, USA 2012 
• "My benchmark. I’ve had every vintage of Coleraine the Buck family have made, from the inaugural 1982 to the current 2015. Te Mata Estate is the standard by which every other wine producer could be judged. The full range of styles has always been impeccable." -  Raymond Chan Wine Reviews 
• "Arguably New Zealand’s most prestigious wine. No one dreamed such a wine could be made from New Zealand grapes. Dramatically raising the bar for red wine in New Zealand." Coleraine ’16 Review Summary, Bob Campbell Decanter Magazine, October 2018 
• "A great wine from the very first vintage. Consistently great." -  Huon Hooke, The Real Review October 2018 
• "A national treasure. A benchmark, with a remarkable track record for age-worthiness. Consistently high quality and style have been hallmarks since day one." - Linda Murphy, jancisrobinson.com. October 2018
• "The Buck family of the Te Mata estate produce the best New Zealand wine I have come across … could have passed muster as a classed-growth claret." - Bruce Anderson, The Spectator, May 2020