Saorsa Syrah 2023

Saorsa Syrah 2023

NZD$42.00
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Description

Aromatic notes of rose petals and dried herbs layered upon liquorice, smoke and earth. Fresh and lively with a seductive silky finish. Our wines are produced with oxygen exposure and develop greatly once opened. Decanting the wines will allow them to truly express themselves.

VINEYARD

Picked from vineyards situated in the harsh Gimblett Gravels of Hawke’s Bay. Soils laid down by the Ngaruroro River, natural bands of silt are streaked through the harsh gravels. The stones reflect a vast amount of light while providing a hostile growing environment and retaining a small amount of heat when the temperature drops at night over the  plains.

VINTAGE

2023 was a very intense and challenging season! Hawke’s Bay saw a very wet growing season leading to intense canopy growth in the vines. This challenging growing season was completely surpassed by cyclone Gabrielle which completely engulfed Hawke’s Bay in early February as we were preparing for harvest. This made for an extremely difficult start to harvest until we were blessed by an extended period of dry weather for a Hawke’s Bay Indian Summer leading to some great fruit quality in later varieties. 2023 shows great aromatics, crispness and a marked delicacy in the wines. 

--------THE PRODUCER--------

Saorsa

Saorsa is small, micro-small. We are family-owned and operated, with each Montaperto-Hendry chipping in to make it a success. Alex has worked in the vines and cellars since leaving school and moving to Hawke’s Bay where he met his wife Hana who is a trained stainless steel engineer.

--------THE GRAPE--------

Syrah/Shiraz

Syrah and Shiraz are two different names for the same red wine grape (and wines made from that grape). “Syrah” is what it's called in France’s Rhône Valley, where it is the main red wine grape of the Northern Rhône and a blending grape in the Southern Rhône. “Shiraz” is what winemakers in Australia typically call it.

Over time, the use of Shiraz or Syrah has taken on more meaning, and producers might choose one name or the other to indicate the style of their wine. A winemaker might bottle a “Shiraz” to indicate they made a rich, lush, riper, more fruit-forward wine in the Australian spirit. Or they might instead call their wine “Syrah” to indicate a more Old World– or leaner style of wine. Unfortunately, these terms can be used inconsistently.

As far as the link to Persia, Shiraz is the name of the capital in the Fars province, and there’s evidence that the earliest wines were made in that part of the world. For a long time it was believed that cuttings from Persia made their way to France’s Rhône region, and Syrah might have hailed from Persia, but DNA testing proved that Syrah/Shiraz is indigenous to France.

 

--------THE REGION--------

Hawkes Bay

Sunny Hawkes Bay is along the eastern coast of New Zealand's north island. It is here where some of the most fruit-forward wines come from. They are known for their tropical Chardonnays and their juicy reds from the excellent Bordeaux wines to the peppery Syrahs.