Vintage: 2016

VintageProduct CodeFormatClosureAvailability
2016TR112B166 x 75Natural CorkAvailable
2016TR112M166 x 150Natural CorkAvailable
Vegetarian
Vegan
Producer

Founded in 1993, by winemaker John Hancock together with Robert and Robyn Wilson, owners of The Bleeding Heart Group and The Don in London, Trinity Hill is synonymous with quality and consistency. In 2021, Trinity Hill was bought by a group of New Zealand private investors passionate about the wine industry, including Director, Mitch Plaw and his business partners, Craig Turner, Mark Sandelin and Michael Nock.

Winemaker Warren Gibson has worked at Trinity Hill since 1997. Alongside his winemaking expertise, Warren also manages Trinity Hill’s 80 hectares of vineyards across Hawkes Bay and the Gimblett Gravels. He is well versed in these areas and this knowledge is reflected in his wines. Warren and his team show the best of what Hawkes Bay and the Gimblett Gravels can produce. These are wines defined by elegance, balance, drinkability and flavour precision, making them a joy to drink.

Gimblett Gravels

In 1993, Trinity Hill was among the first to plant grapes on the Gimblett Gravels in Hawkes Bay. Located on the former bed of the Ngaruroro River, the Gimblett Gravels is a highly sought-after sub-region, prized for the quality of its Syrah.

Trinity Hill’s Gimblett Gravels Syrah is sourced from various vineyards in the sub-region, where the soils consist of deep greywacke gravels. The Syrah is co-fermented with Viognier skins, nodding to a classic Côte-Rôtie blend and creating an elegant wine, defined by notes of cracked pepper and wild berry fruits balanced by good acidity. ‘The Gimblett’ blends Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and a little Tempranillo, sourced from two low-yielding vineyards. The resulting wine is powerful and richly structured with lovely blackberry aromatics. Their Gimblett Gravels Tempranillo, made in minute quantities, displays attractive bramble fruit aromas and has soft, velvety tannins. Yet perhaps their most outstanding red wine is the lauded ‘Homage’ Syrah, which is produced only in the very best years and in very limited quantities. It pays tribute to the late Gérard Jaboulet, a long-time friend of Robert, Robyn and John, who worked alongside Gérard in Tain L’Hermitage for the 1996 vintage. Inspired by Côte-Rôtie, it is a wine of incredible elegance and power with great concentration.

Trinity Hill’s Gimblett Gravels Chardonnay, which offers superb value, is fermented with indigenous yeast in 500-litre puncheons before being aged for 11 months in oak, followed by four months on its lees in tank. The resulting wine is defined by notes of citrus, white flowers and ripe grapefruit, as well as toasted cashew and roasted hazelnut. They also produce a single-vineyard Chardonnay using fruit sourced from the ‘125 Gimblett Vineyard’, named after the road that runs past it, in the heart of the Gimblett Gravels. Made as a limited release, this is a powerful, multi-layered wine which was the only New Zealand wine to be awarded a trophy at the 2022 International Wine & Spirit Competition.

Vineyards

Sourced from company owned vineyards in the Gimblett Gravels sub-region of Hawke's Bay. The soils consist of deep river shingle deposited over time by the Ngaruroro River as it changed course. The exposed greywacke gravel stones absorb and re-radiate heat and are extremely free draining. These are perfect conditions for growing Syrah. The vines largely 19-year-old mass selection clones.

Vintage

A very late beginning to the season was followed by a very warm summer and early autumn period. The warm days were also combined with warm night-time temperatures and high humidity. It was definitely a season to be close and vigilant with the vines.

Vinification

The grapes were harvested between 18th - 23rd April 2016. The hand-picked grapes were sorted with 70% de-stemmed and lightly crushed to leave a large portion of complete berries. The remaining 30% was fermented as whole bunches. The cap was hand-plunged and/or pumped over twice daily for optimum colour and tannin extraction. The average time on skins was 30 days, with one component passing 50 days. This maceration helped with tannin complexity, softening and stabilising the wine. The wine was subsequently aged in predominantly new French oak barriques for 15 months, with malolactic fermentation beginning in tank and finishing in barrel.

Tasting Notes & Technical Details

The 'Homage' is beautifully floral with interwoven berry purity and oak sophistication. This is a darker fruit vintage with brambly, blackberry notes dominating the aromatics. It is very powerful and fragrant with great concentration of flavour. Stunningly spicy with Italianate tannins.

Alcohol (ABV)

13%

Acidity

6.4 g/l

Residual Sugar

0.46 g/l

pH

3.82

Awards
Silver

International Wine Challenge 2019

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Producer
Wine
Product Code
Features
Style
Gimblett GravelsHawkes Bay Sauvignon BlancTR101
W
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Factsheet
Gimblett Gravels ChardonnayTR107
Vegetarian
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W
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Gimblett Gravels Marsanne/ViognierTR108
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Gimblett Gravels TempranilloTR109
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Sustainable
R
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Gimblett Gravels SyrahTR110
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R
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`The Gimblett` Gimblett GravelsTR111
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R
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Factsheet
`125 Gimblett` Gimblett Gravels ChardonnayTR151
Vegetarian
Vegan
W
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Hawkes BayHawkes Bay ChardonnayTR103
Vegetarian
W
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Hawkes Bay Pinot NoirTR104
Vegetarian
Vegan
R
Red
Hawkes Bay SyrahTR105
Vegetarian
Vegan
R
Red
Factsheet
`The Trinity` Hawkes BayTR106
R
Red