Reviews
Alma 2018 Reviews
Alma '18 - 'Moderately deep colour with a ruby rim. Delicately scented pinot noir with a plum, dark berry. Liquorice, black pepper, anise, subtly dried hard and spicy oak flavours. Classy wine - an amplified version of the Estate Pinot Noir with a fairly solid influence of stylish oak.' 95 Points ★★★★★
Bob Campbell MW, The Real Review, July 2019 Featuring: Alma 2018
Alma'18 - 'Revealing elegance and sophistication, the engaging bouquet shows Black Doris plum, dark cherry, warm spice and toasted nut characters with nuances of truffle and floral. The palate displays outstanding concentration and focus, while offering rich texture and expansive mouthfeel, superbly framed by loads of fine, polished tannins. Multi-layered and magnificently flowing to an impressively long silky finish. The wine is gloriously composed and expressed, promising to evolve gracefully. The wine exhibits classic Te Mata elegance, freshness and refinement within a perfectly formed structure.' 96 Points ★★★★★
Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, 2019 Featuring: Alma 2018
Alma '18 - 'Estate-grown inland, at the cool, elevated Woodthorpe Terraces vineyard, in the Dartmoor Valley, and matured in French oak barriques (over 50% new), it is deeply coloured, mouthfilling, rich and supple, with densely packed cherry, plum and spice flavours. A powerful, structured, youthful red, it’s well worth cellaring to 2022+.' ★★★★★
Michael Cooper, 2019 Featuring: Alma 2018
Alma '18 - 'A very expressive velvet-textured bouquet showing lots of youthful power and energy as well as a core of fruit, oak and savoury complexity. Perfectly weighted on the palate, dry, savoury and fruity with a plum, cherry and spice flavour package. Whispers of dark rose and stony minerality. There’s no mistaking the impact of oak and whole bunch approach, but there’s enough weight and fruit to carry this aspect. Tannins and acidity are abundant. Overall a very nice wine, very young with an inherent complexity that should carry it well into the bottle developed phase.' - 94 Points
Cameron Douglas MS, 2019 Featuring: Alma 2018
Alma '18 - 'Very clean and pure on the first taste then on the palate there was a lovely savoury and delicate, light, red fruit mix.'
Roger Jones, The Buyer, January 2020 Featuring: Alma 2018
Alma '18 - 'This is the first Pinot Noir from Te Mata and is a different style to those made further south. The grapes were hand picked from a vineyard in the Dartmoor Valley, a cooler area in the Hawke’s Bay wine climate spectrum. Despite which, this good quality red tastes bigger, more full bodied and spicier than many New Zealand Pinots. A wine to watch – and to cellar. Give it another four to five years.' 17.5/20 Points
