Mills Reef Arthur Edmund Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot

One of New Zealand’s most exceptional red wines – and at $350 per bottle sits among the top ten list of NZ’s most expensive wines too! This is Arthur Edmond and it’s the flagship red wine of Hawke’s Bay producer Mills Reef.

Master of Wine Bob Campbell compiles a list of NZ’s most expensive wines and at last time of checking Arthur Edmund comes third behind a couple of Waiheke Island’s Destiny Bay’s reds. The list includes some heavy hitters like Church Road’s TOM and Waiheke Island’s Te Motu.

Arthur Edmund is a tribute by Mills Reef’s co-founders Paddy & Tim Preston to their grandfather. “Arthur Edmund, my grandfather, was a pioneer and visionary, that same spirit is likewise echoed in these special wines, hence we felt it was a fitting tribute to name them in his honour, and to accompany the fine wines named in honour of his wife and my grandmother, Elspeth.”

This 2020 release of their Arthur Edmund Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot from what is basically the vintage of a lifetime. As winemaker Paul explains “This is only our second release under this label. The previous vintage before this was in 2013,” explains Chief Winemaker, Paul Dawick. “That’s because it is only made when Mother Nature does exactly what every winemaker wants her to do; provide us with constant hot, dry weather with minimal rainfall.”

Make no mistake this is a red of serious quality with nothing left to chance! A 50/50 blend of Cabernet and Merlot from the Gimblett Gravels, using only fruit from the oldest vines from selected rows, low yields of only three or four bunches of grapes per vine. Winemaker Paul goes on to say “These rare wines are the result of great vineyard sites paired with ideally-suited grape varieties, low-yielding vines, climatically exceptional growing seasons, and diligent hand-harvesting and bunch selection, with minimal winemaker intervention,” explains Dawick. “Both wines are unfined and unfiltered, thus expressing the full terroir characters from the vineyards. They are a true expression of purity.”

Scoring 96/100 with Master of Wine Bob Campbell who said “Intense, ripe red with cassis, blackberry, dark cherry, anise/spice, cedar wood, and classy French oak flavours.”

Beautifully presented in a branded black gift box sealed with the unique bottle number – only 399 bottles were produced. Cellar for 15-20 years from vintage.