A courier pack delivered just before Christmas contained a brace of Trinity Hill wines. As we starteded to unwrap the two bottles, we couldn't help thinking that one felt remarkably like a bottle of sparkling wine. A sparkling wine ? From Trinity Hill ? Well, no wine style is immune to the winemaking charms of one J. Hancock Esq., a man who seems to delight in exploring as many of Europe's grape varieties as he can.
Trinity Hill ‘H’ Blanc de Blanc is a methode traditionelle made from chardonnay. Light and fresh, not much by way of autolytic character but with a delicate bead, ripe apple and citrus flavours, crisp acid and a dryish finish. A worthwhile attempt, and not too badly priced either at around $30, though we couldn't help but comment on the rather ugly label.
The other bottle, as far removed from a light blanc de blanc as one could imagine, was the 2007 Trinity Hill Homage Syrah. Following the Hawke's Bay fashion of bottling big, 'serious' reds in whopping heavyweight bottles, this was no exception though the subtle matt finish label does give the wine a more stylish image.
And so what of this latest release? Much as we like JH (and we are big fans at the IWM) there was no escaping the fact that earlier vintages of Trinity Hill reds were hallmarked by dry, often almost bruising tannins. However the winemaking approach now appears to be as svelte as the newly slender John himself and the tannins here were ripe, silky and seamlessly integrated into the lush, exuberant fruit-packed palate. Bilberry, blackberry, dark plum and morello cherry flavours jostle with leather, spice and just a touch of black pepper. The immediate succulence and richness shouldn't overshadow the fact that this is a wine that, whilst perfectly enjoyable now (Emma and I had no problems polishing off the bottle – we were on holiday, after all), has the structure and density to make it a candidate for long term cellaring. A genuinely exciting release.