Last month I had the absolute pleasure of attending a Craggy Range master class to celebrate their 25^th anniversary. The lineup was fantastic and a great way to experience their top wines across a wide range of vintages.

Featured wines.

Aroha Pinot Noir 2006, 2014, 2019

Aroha means love in Māori, and it takes a lot of love to make a great Pinot Noir wine… Sourced from Te Muna Road vineyard in Martinborough, these three wines all displayed a lovely bright red fruit flavor profile intermixed with well-integrated high quality French oak flavors (30-36% new), and silky tannins. The 2006 was the wine of the flight and had a haunting Chinese Five Spice flavor that lingered on the finish.

Le Sol Syrah 2002, 2009, 2020 and Sophia 2001, 2013, 2020

The next six wines are sourced from the distinct Gimblett Gravels sub-region of Hawke’s Bay, known for producing the highest quality full-bodied red wines of New Zealand. Degree days in Gimblett Gravels falls at 1503, which sits between Bordeaux at 1450 and Napa at 1580.

Le Sol is Craggy Range’s 100% Syrah wine. These wines are structured, with dense and layered black fruit, as well as noticeable black pepper (rotundone), and a sense of freshness even in the older vintages. Alcohol levels have lowered in Le Sol over time with the lineup clocking in at 15%, 14.1%, and 13.5% respectively.

Sophia is their flagship wine and is a Merlot dominant “Bordeaux blend”. Robert Parker was a fan early on and dished out high scores, even comparing 2001 Sophia to Cheval Blanc. His praise on Craggy Range’s initial wines was critical in opening up the US market, a market that is still a top performer 25 years later. The Sophia wines are clearly high quality, well made, and are elegant expressions showing what a Merlot led blend can achieve in New Zealand. They are less opulent than one would expect from Napa, while being more fruit forward than one would expect from Bordeaux. Structure, freshness, aromatic floral notes (Cabernet Franc), and flavors of ripe black plum, blackberry, and high-quality toasted cedar are found in all three wines. With the 2001 out of magnum showing significant tertiary development of faded black fruit, earth, and tobacco but with plenty of flavor intensity and structure to continue to hold.

Thank you Dave Peabody for coming to Miami and sharing these wonderful wines!