2024 Te Mata Estate Coleraine

Dubbed as "New Zealand's greatest winery" by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and "New Zealand's first growth" by Decanter (amongst many other superlatives), Te Mata is a family-owned Estate in Hawke's Bay, on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. Established in 1896 on a former pastoral land-holding, the Estate has been producing classic wines modelled on Bordeaux varieties and blends with a modern interpretation.

Coleraine is an assemblage of the finest wines from distinct plots within Te Mata Estate's oldest vineyards on the Havelock Hills. Each parcel of grapes was destemmed before a warm-plunged fermentation and extended maceration on skins. The resulting wines were then matured in predominantly new French oak barrels for 17 months. The final blend of this 2024 is 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 11% Cabernet Franc.

Other Reviews....
Superlative balance. Aromas of blackberries, currants, blueberries, graphite and dark tobacco with hints of bark, violets and licorice. Medium-bodied with ultra-fine velvety tannins and a seamless, cashmere texture. So caressing and polished. Bright and vivid at the end. 58% cabernet sauvignon. 31% merlot and 11% cabernet franc. Will be released March 1. You could drink this tonight and enjoy it, but it will age.
98 points
James Suckling

This is 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 11% Cabernet Franc. 55% new oak. This vintage puts me in mind of the mighty 2020; that sort of depth and concentration, though it has some of the acid cut of 2021 in the mix too. Winemaker Phil Brodie says 2024 was a dry vintage, and warm too, with small bunches and lower crop levels. Said it could have gone too ripe, but they walked through the vineyards on a daily basis, tasting and testing, and they picked it when they thought it was just right. When I think about NZ wine, at the top of the tree, I have Kumeu for Chardonnay, Bilancia for Shiraz (and sometimes Chardonnay!), and Te Mata for Cabernet. A trio of meticulous producers who regularly deliver that little bit extra. The one percenters, if you like.
Deep dark wine, black and red fruit, chocolate and ironstone, some creamy and spicy cedar oak, dried flowers, a light minty perfume, slight roasted red capsicum and pimento. It’s medium to full-bodied, crisp ‘mineral’ acidity, lavish graphite tannin, tobacco and nori, a fresh blackberry nip to it, brooding and ferrous, with a firm and savoury finish of superb length. An exceptional wine. It will keep, probably, for as long as you want to keep it, if you can keep your hands off it, that is. Drink 2028-2049+.
97+ points
Gary Walsh - The Wine Front

This is a masterpiece, much like a great work of art. The bouquet shows cassis, dark plum, bouquet garni, baking spice, rich floral, and cedar characters. It’s concentrated with exceptional depth and mouth-coating texture, wonderfully framed by finely polished tannins. It’s perfectly proportioned and gracefully powerful, combining scintillating fruit purity with seductive complexity. The wine flows seamlessly to a persistent, structured finish.
100 points
Sam Kim - Wine Orbit