Matthew Jukes (19.5+)

Peter Gago explained that on 20th December, the temperature peaked at 45.6C, yet these vines dealt perfectly with this extreme challenge. In fact, I think it emboldened these vines, giving them a serious depth of flavour and darkness that opens onto a phenomenal array of black fruit and density, and it is packed with awesome power, and yet it is so refreshing and lifted on the finish it defies belief! Compact yet massive, overwhelmingly grand and delicately perfumed, this is an incredible RWT with a very long life ahead of it. This is an unmissable wine for serious collectors in this release.

James Suckling (96)

Attractive bath powder and lemon blossom as well as white peach, grapefruit and some flint. The palate has a super fleshy feel with a blaze of acidity and long, fresh lemon, grapefruit and white-peach flavors. Good acidity and concentration. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Halliday Wine Companion (98)

Named after the family matriarch. Selection of the best parcels of fruit from the Polish Hill River estate. pH 2.93, TA 8.23 g/L, RS 3.1 g/L. Pikes' flagship, but also a Clare Valley flagship. It's not often a 6-month-old riesling can be described as luscious, but that's the impact of this wine. It's citrus focused, of course, and it also has keynote acidity, but it's the honeyed mouthfeel and flavour that hits the jackpot.

Decanter (95)

Seifried was established in Nelson in 1973 by Austrian-born Hermann Seifriedand his New Zealand wife Agnes, and their Aotea series represents specially selected, single- vineyard wines. The fruit for the 2020 Sauvignon Blanc comes from the stony, free-draining soils of the Brightwater Vineyard, just 15km from the coast. It was de-stemmed and pressed immediately after harvest, before undergoing cool fermentation in stainless steel.
Roger Jones: Savoury, with herbaceous notes and textured spice. Some age coming through to give it legs. Clean and focused, this will impress people, especially when served with food.
Melanie Brown: Tropical hints on the nose, with subtle floral nuances flowing across the palate. Poised and elegant, with fresh and lively acidity that feels balanced.
Rebecca Palmer: This has a light, delicate aromatic profile with some lime/lime leaf characters. Drink 2022-2025 Alc 13%

Halliday Wine Companion (98)

Sourced from 3 vineyards in Piccadilly, Lobethal and the estate’s high-elevation Lenswood block. Whole-bunch pressed, fermented and matured on lees in French barriques and puncheons. The first thing that strikes you is an elegance that is so fundamental to the style and respectful to the elite fruit within. The faintest of oak lifts adds a complexity to start, but the energy and concentration of the fruit become the prime focus on the palate. It's all about chardonnay's finest flavours and a vibrant acidity to drive it long into the future.

Wine Advocate (98)

The 2020 The Schubert Theorem Shiraz was made with fruit from the Roennfeldt Road vineyard in Marananga, with 70% whole bunches in the ferment. This is the only cuvée in the collection that sees any inclusion of a different maturation vessel: the northeastern corner of the vineyard goes into concrete, because it retains the pure blue fruit characters that so define the wine. When one considers the dirt that is in this vineyard (and I ask you, without dirt, just where would we all be?), when one sees its black, shaley sparkle, one can get a sense of what to expect in the wine. It is always the black, brooding beast of the pack, but there is always—and I repeat, ALWAYS—a core of very pure fruit at its heart. This year is no different, and it is encased in fine but structuring tannin. It soars long across the palate, and yet within it, this wine is elegant and pliable. If the Lamella is the intriguing, pretty wine, and The Standish is the savory powerhouse, then The Relic is the iron fist–velvet glove... which makes this the enigma. I cannot overstate how attracted I am to the prowling, slinking nature of it. The tannins here—of all the wines—have a blueberry skin gravel to them; they are chalky and fine and a little bit gritty… excellent. This is a sensation, in every respect. A hot contender for best wine in the release this year.

Wine Advocate (96)

The 2020 The Standish Shiraz was made with fruit from the Laycock family vineyard, in Greenock. The first vintage was 1999. This vintage saw 30% whole bunches in the ferment. It offers notes of red dirt, a bit of blood, salted heirloom tomato and satsuma plum. This is concentrated, compacted, plush, dense and muscular, with notes of ras el’hanout, allspice, torched cinnamon and salted Dutch licorice. This wine is like playing "Magic Eye." There’s a lot going on, but if you relax, a pattern emerges and the detail becomes obvious for all to see. Within the fine but plushly tannic frame, there is saltbush and bay leaf, exotic spice and cascading layers of berry fruits. The dirt in which the roots are entangled similarly shows its colors—and these are red, ochre, earth and dust. At first glance, the foolish and the rash will overlook this for being singularly muscular and full-bodied, but like all the best IYKYK (if you know, you know—wink wink) scenarios, there is far more than meets the palate here. Another blockbuster Standish.

Wine Advocate (99)

The 2020 The Relic Shiraz-Viognier is made with fruit from the Hongell family vineyard in Krondorf, with 15% to 20% whole bunches in the ferment and 1% Viognier skins co-fermented. This is the best I’ve seen it. There’s something about the combination of the hot year and the diminished yields—it has recoiled and recompressed the Viognier on top of and into the Shiraz and brought them into balance/harmony. Beneath its floral and stone fruit guiles is a pool of savory, muscular, red-dirt Shiraz. There is bacon fat and pure berry fruit and spice for days… I’ve recently looked at a previous vintage of this wine alongside an older but immaculate Chateau d’Ampuis, and while their origins were clear in the glass, the Relic proved an Australian perspective more than relevant. The balance between the varieties—and the classic push/pull of sweet and savory—is more harmonious this year than in any I can remember, and the only thing I am more excited about when I consider this wine is what I will say next year, through the lens of an excellent, cool and elegant year. What a fine pair they will make.

Delight in the exquisite experience of Stonyridge Larose 2020, a testament to the mastery of Stonyridge Vineyard. Internationally acclaimed for crafting some of the world's finest Cabernet-blend wines, the New Zealand vineyard situated on the tranquil valley of Waiheke Island adheres to traditional techniques to yield this unrivalled vintage.

Produced with exceptional attention to detail, Stonyridge Larose 2020 is a blend of five Bordeaux varietals: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot. Its intricate creation process includes organic practices, hand harvesting, and meticulous sorting to ensure only exemplary grapes contribute to the grandeur.

This 2020 expression displays an opulent, full-bodied palate, emphasising rich dark fruit notes, well-integrated tannins, and a lasting finish, beautifully reflecting the unique microclimate and volcanic soil of its birthplace. Unveiling sophistication sip by sip, discover the enchantment of Stonyridge Larose 2020, a world-class wine of unrivalled excellence.

Ray Jordan (98)

Winemaker Brian Croser is pretty excited about this wine, and a quick sniff and extended sip, and I think I know why. Like the rest of Australia, it was a very small crop resulting in a wine of deep fruit concentration. Once again, the wine spent an extended time until February this year on full lees, allowing pick up of further complexity and textural mouth feel. The striking feature is the palate power and length. I have tasted many of these wines but I don’t think I have tasted better.

Vinous (95)

Initially tight as a monkey's nuts, the very young 2020 Awatea needs time to open up and reveal its creamy, seductive personality. Tasted alongside the already impressive 2019 Awatea, the 2020 goes a step further in its substance, depth and ripeness. It has a rich mid-palate of sweet black currant, black olives and mint, but it's all tremendously creamy. Underneath the lush exterior, an abundance of fine yet structured powdery tannins combine with fine acidity to provide the architecture for this intense wine. Offering excellent persistence, structure and scent, the 2020 has knocked it out of the park. Best Awatea ever? You might be looking at it.

Wine Orbit (98)

This is brimming with gorgeous aromas of Black Doris plum, violet, warm spice and toasted almond on the nose, leading to a concentrated palate offering a rich texture and plush mouthfeel. It’s powerful and imposing while remaining gracious and captivating, beautifully framed by fine grainy tannins, finishing persistent and immensely satisfying.

Wine Orbit (100)

This is solidly built yet fine and flawless with cassis, scented floral, olive, cake spice and stylish oak aromas on the nose. The powerfully concentrated palate offers dazzling clarity of fruit purity as well as astonishing complexity, brilliantly structured by perfectly pitched chalky tannins. Beautifully layered with formidable depth and seductive texture, making this rendition of Coleraine undeniably spellbinding.

James Suckling (99)

This really asserts itself at the top echelon of chardonnay, in a context that extends far beyond the shores of the tiny island state of Tasmania. Already in such a great place, with aromas of white peach, lemon, lemon curd and very precisely curated sulphides adding interest. There’s wet chalk, lemon peel and gentle hazelnutty oak in play as well. The palate has seamless, layered and fresh citrus and peach flavors, as well as a stream of pithy grapefruit and peach on offer. Acidity holds the finish long and true. This is one of the most elegant vintages of this wine, reminiscent of the 2014. Oak chimes in so subtly on the finish. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Crafted by Trinity Hill, a winery with a reputation for expressive and complex wines, the Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2020 is an exquisite delight. Enhancing the Hawke’s Bay area's reputation for exceptional Syrah cultivation, this wine echoes Old World cool-climate Syrah at its best. Delicately matured with the finest French oak integration, it results in a superbly balanced wine that doesn’t rely on brute force, but rather elegant fruit concentration and refined tannins.

The Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2020 offers layered aromas of dark plum, ground pepper and exotic florals, with a pencil-lead minerality adding to its complexity. It offers a delightful tension on the palate, with restrained dark fruit flavours, firm but ripe tannins, and a long sophisticated finish. An excellent partner for game and other robust red meat dishes, this Syrah is one of New Zealand's finest. Indulge in the rich depth of Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2020 and experience exceptional winemaking at its finest.

Wine Orbit (96)

Gorgeously fruited and splendidly styled, showing sweet plum, thyme, roasted nut and warm mushroom aromas, the wine exhibits awesome concentration and richness, while remaining elegant and refined. Plush and persistent with fine grainy tannins, finishing superbly long and satisfying. Certified organic. At its best: now to 2032.

Vinous (93)

Opaque, bright-rimmed magenta. A highly perfumed, spice-accented bouquet displays kirsch, black currant, vanilla and pipe tobacco qualities and a smoky mineral topnote. Youthfully chewy and energetic on the palate, offering sharply focused dark berry, bitter cherry, floral pastille and spicecake flavors that deepen slowly and become sweeter with aeration. Quite lively for its depth, with building florality that carries through a long, spicy finish given shape by fine-grained tannins. 40% new French oak.