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New Zealand / Hawkes Bay

The Vidal winery is situated on the original site in Hastings, Hawkes Bay, which was purchased by its founder Anthony Joseph Vidal back in 1905.  Back then the site was a rural location, today though it is now in the heart of residential suburbia. Limitations on space and restricted operating times have meant a move to a new state-of-the art winemaking facility in the Gimblett Gravels.

Vidal is dedicated to environmentally friendly winemaking and sustainable winegrowing practices. This mindset allows Vidal to contribute to New Zealand’s “clean, green” image and increase quality assurance from vineyard through to the finished wine. Vidal was a founding member of the Living Wine group, a small group of wineries who gained ISO 14001 certification in 1998, having achieved a globally recognised standard in environmental management systems. The winery is a member of Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ) and BioGro certified, meaning it is accredited to process grapes grown using organic principles.

“Very dark, deep, black-hued purple-red colour, youthful in appearance. The nose is full and voluminous with firmly concentrated and deep aromas of ripe blackberry fruit melded with iron-earth and black mineral notes. Black and violet florals unfold, with spice and liquorice elements, black plums and a suggestion of funky reductive mineral complexity. Full-bodied and powerfully presented on the palate, this is solidly concentrated, near-sturdy, but retaining style. The fruit is particularly dense and concentrated, lending remarkable body, weight and presence. The flavours of well-ripened black berried fruits, iron-earth, plums and liquorice are complexed by spice nuances, and show with richness, succulence and lusciousness. The fruit sweetness is balanced by very fine-grained, powdery tannins with considerable extract. The palate caries to a very long, lingering finish. 100% Syrah, 67% from the ‘Omahu Gravels’ and 33% from the ‘Twyford Gravels’ vineyards, fully destemmed and fermented to 13.5% alc., the wine spending 32 days on skins and aged 18 months in 38% new French oak barriques. 500 cases made.” 19.5+/20 Aug 2017  Raymond Chan Wine Reviews