Thornbury Hawke's Bay NZ Merlot 2007

86/100 45

Attractive, intensely fruit red with plum and berry flavours interwoven with spicy oak. Low cropping levels has elevated fruit power and density to impressive levels, particularly for a wine at this price. Made from hand-harvested grapes that were destemmed and crushed before being fermented and hand plunged four times a day for a lengthy four weeks. Maturation was in a mix of French and American oak barriques for 16 months. How they can lavish that much attention to produce a wine of this quality at a fairly diminutive price is anybody’s guess.