The wines of Alpha
Domus, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand
1829
Maraekakaho Road, RD1 Hastings, New Zealand
E-mail: wine@alphadomus.co.nz
Website: www.alphadomus.co.nz
UK agent: McKinley Vintners (info@mckinleyvintners.co.uk)
Some
historical background to begin with. The Ham family emigrated to
New Zealand from the Netherlands in the 1960s. In the 1980s they
began to look at investing in a vineyard, and eventually purchased
a 20 hectare (50 acres) block on the Ngatarawa plains west of
Hastings (Hawkes Bay region), planted the first vines in 1991 and
then added an extra 15 hectares a few years ago. First vintage was
1995. The soils are relatively infertile and free draining,
consisting of silt loam overlaying river gravel. It’s also quite
a warm region, with summer daytime temperatures often exceeding 40
ºC.
As
you can see from my notes, I really liked these wines. The range
includes some of New Zealand’s most impressive reds, together
with the wonderful AD Chardonnay, of which I tried four different
vintages. Prices are very respectable considering the quality on
offer here.
Alpha
Domus Semillon 2000, Hawkes Bay
An interesting, full flavoured dry white wine. Slightly shy nose
with a herbal edge and a bit of citrus character. Rich-textured,
full flavoured palate with a nice richness and a herbal edge. Very
good+ (£7.49 Harrods, Howells of Cardiff)
Alpha
Domus Chardonnay 2001, Hawkes Bay
Unoaked. Quite deep coloured. Distinctive herbal quality to
the fruit. The palate is quite full flavoured with herbal-edged
citrussy fruit. Tasty stuff and very impressive. Very
good/excellent (£7.99 Haslemere Cellar, Martinez Fine Wine)
Alpha
Domus 'AD' Chardonnay 2000, Hawkes Bay
Complex creamy, bready toasty nose. The palate is rich and
concentrated with good acidity and a spicy finish. Savoury and
rich with lots of oak, but lots of fruit too. Needs time to settle
down but lots of potential. Very good/excellent (£11.99 Harrods,
The Haslemere Cellar, Martinez Fine Wine)
AD
Chardonnay 1999, Hawkes Bay
Very deep yellow/gold colour. Intense, enticing nose shows
very rich, complex herbal fruit intertwined with toasty, bready
oak. The palate is deliciously full-on with concentrated herby
fruit and lots of vanilla spice from the oak. Very good/excellent
AD
Chardonnay 1998, Hawkes Bay
This is a brilliant interpretation of Chardonnay. Lovely
spiciness to the intense nose, which
displays complex fruit and toasty, bready new oak. Huge
concentration on the palate but still in great balance, with a
spicy edge to the savoury complexity and high acidity. Excellent
AD
Chardonnay 1997, Hawkes Bay
Quite a deep yellow/gold colour. Very rich, intense nose shows
evolved savoury, bready, butterscotchy notes. Powerful, intense
palate with savoury complexity to the fruit. Works quite well and
not over the hill yet. Very good/excellent
Alpha
Domus Pinot Noir 2000, Hawkes Bay
Deep red/purple colour. Slightly restrained cherry and berry
fruit on the nose with some rich spicy oak. Fruity palate with a
spicy edge: this is concentrated stuff, and although it’s quite
a classy wine it’s probably a bit too rich for a Pinot Noir?
Very good+ (£12.99 Amps Fine Wine, Clifton Cellars)
Alpha
Domus Merlot Cabernet 2000, Hawkes Bay
Very deep purple/black colour. Wonderful striking leafy,
mineral edge to the bright blackcurrant fruit on the nose.
Attractive restrained berry fruit on the palate: ripe, but with a
spicy, mineralic complexity. Very good/excellent (£9.99 Haslemere
Cellar)
Alpha
Domus The Navigator 1999, Hawkes Bay
Hand picked, basket pressed and aged in a mixture of French
and American oak. Enticing nose of sweet ripe berry fruit backed
with some classy spicy new oak. Rich, concentrated palate is
beautifully in balance with sweet ripe berry fruit and spicy oak.
Quite restrained despite the concentration. Very good/excellent (£12.99
The Haslemere Cellar, Richards and Richards Fine Wines, Stanton
Wine Company)
Alpha
Domus 'AD' The Aviator 1998, Hawkes Bay
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec and Cabernet
Franc, aged in French oak barriques. Deep red/black colour. Lovely
rich nose of spicy berry fruit. The palate shows a great
concentration of complex, rich fruit with firm tannins. Rich yet
balanced. Very good/excellent (£18.99 Harrods, The Haslemere
Cellar, Noel Young Wines, G R Pickard and Son)
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wines tasted
February 2002; article published October 2002
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