
The Dunes ‘The Journey’ Mangawhai Merlot 2011
I have to relocate my cellar on Friday…along with everything else.
The reason is, I have bought a new house with my lovely L. Settlement day is this Thursday, and we move in together and combine our two households the day after. The arrival of house movers will mark the next stage of the wonderful journey I am on with her!
Wow. I will get to share some of my wonderful wines with her on a regular basis, and not only when we are in each others company.
Therefore, I have been busy packing, ‘de-cluttering’, and prepping my old house for letting out to tenants. I’ll be a landlord for the first time.
The most recent storm outside has abated (you gotta love Wellington’s ‘summer’) and I have this new wine to appreciate while I take a break in the sun.
It is fitting that this merlot is entitled “The Journey’. A new producer – the Moss Trust. The only reference I can find on the Net is to an outfit called Te Whai Wines in Northland, but they seem to be only the agent.
The wine has a really beguiling nose. I can’t precisely place what I can smell other than ripe stone fruit. Star anise? Aniseed? Lanolin? Gunpowder? Soap? It is like nothing I have smelt before in an NZ wine. Is it because it is from the far north, with heat, rainfall and humidity you wouldn’t find elsewhere in NZ? Is it a fault in this wine, or an expression of terroir? I’d love to talk to the winemaker about that.
The aromas carry through into the mouth. 13%. Rich red plums. Soft tannins. Smooth mouthfeel. Rich ruby colour in the glass. There is a good deal going on. The couple of years bottle development helps out. 3
This vintage is dedicated to the winemakers mother, who passed away two weeks after harvest.