Gimblett Gravels 2017 – the rainy vintage

Gimblett gravel and vines in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand

The latest audit of the best reds from a particularly gravelly spot on New Zealand's North Island.

As long-standing members may remember, the producers of the Gimblett Gravels in New Zealand's Hawke's Bay region submit their wines each year to Andrew Caillard MW for him to make a selection of the dozen wines he thinks best exemplify the vintage. These are then circulated to people like me to taste. (Click on the Gimblett Gravels tag above for reports on previous vintages.)

His most recent task, to taste through the 2017s, was perhaps one of the more difficult since 2017 was a particularly challenging...