Babich Winemakers Reserve Syrah 2014 Gimblett Gravels, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand 75cl

Babich is one of New Zealand’s oldest family wineries, founded in 1916 and still run by the family more than a century on. The Winemakers Reserve tier is where they showcase hand-selected fruit from their best sites, and this Syrah draws on the warm, free-draining Gimblett Gravels of Hawkes Bay, from sustainably certified vineyards.

Hawkes Bay is New Zealand’s benchmark region for Syrah, and the Gimblett Gravels in particular ripen the grape to a peppery, medium-weight style closer to the northern Rhone than to Australian Shiraz. This is pure Syrah, whole-berry worked and matured in barrel to build structure without swamping the fruit, with the winemaking favouring texture and perfume over sheer power.

The 2014 vintage in Hawkes Bay was a warm, generous year for the Bordeaux and Rhone varieties, giving reds with ripe fruit and firm but approachable tannins. A decade on, this bottle is drinking in its mature phase.

On the nose, dark plum and blackberry meet the grape’s signature grind of black pepper, with savoury leather and dried herbs from bottle age. The palate is medium-bodied and settled, with fine-grained tannins and a long, gently spiced finish. Air brings out red florals and a deeper, brooding fruit, and the wine holds its shape well in the glass.

This is a wine for the table rather than the aperitif hour. Reach for it with pan-fried lamb cutlets, braised beef or a mature hard cheese. If you enjoy cooler-climate Syrah from the Rhone, this Hawkes Bay style is a natural next step.