2008 Man O' War Ironclad Bordeaux Blend

Wine Advocate
"91 pts ... The multi-award winning 2008 Ironclad has a tight, leafy nose that unfurls in the glass to reveal blackberry, raspberry leaf, a touch of fresh fig and boysenberry jam. The palate is medium-bodied,firm tannins, good weight, gentle but firm grips with a finely tuned, almost Cote-Rotie-like finish. This is one of Waiheke's emerging stars: a top class Merlot that should age well. Drink 2011 - 2017."

Michael Cooper
"4.5/5 Stars ... Deeply coloured, sturdy and packed with blackcurrant, plum, spice and nut flavours slightly chocolately, ripe and long. Savoury, rich, complex and firmly structured, it's one for the cellar. Open 2012+"

Winemaker's Notes
"This wine is built with the Merlot component providing the fruit softness and lifted berry fruit aromas, the Cabernet Franc adding fragrant earthy notes and a sinewy structure. Malbec brings ripe tannins and intense floral aromas while the Petit Verdot and Cabernet Sauvignon add density and tannin weight to the wine. The blend draws all the elements of the five varieties together resulting in a complex aroma profile of cassis and red summer berries, earthy undertones with a touch of floral fragrance, tarmac and leather all framed within a mix of predominantly French oak and a small component of American oak."

Technical Notes
"The 2008 Ironclad is a blend of 52% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Franc, 10.5% Malbec, 9.1% Petit Verdot and 1.4% Cabernet Sauvignon. Each parcel of fruit was kept separate through to the final blending sessions 15 months after harvest. The fruit was all hand harvested and destemmed into large open top fermenters for plunging and pump over�s. After fermentation the wines were gently pressed into a combination of new and old oak and allowed to go through Malolactic fermentation in the barrel. Aged in 20% new French, 5% new American, and 75% old oak. 14.5% alc."