Welcome to the May 2010 issue of the Gladstone Vineyard Grapevine.

IN THIS ISSUE

GLADSTONE VINEYARD COMES OF AGE

NEW RELEASES IN NEW PACKAGING

HIGH FIVE FOR GLADSTONE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR

VINTAGE 2010

WHAT'S ON

The name is the same and the wines are better than ever but we felt the time was right for a change.  Having lived with our old identity for nearly a quarter of a century, Gladstone Vineyard has come of age with its own unique logo – our new symbol of enduring excellence...

Established in 1986, Gladstone Vineyard was the first of a cluster of boutique wineries to emerge on the old riverbed of the Ruamahanga River, in Gladstone, in the heart of the Wairarapa. We aim to craft beautiful wines of exceptional quality, with a richness that expresses the individuality of the soil and outstanding exposure of our vineyards. We are immensely proud of our position in the world of wine and felt the time was right to create a fresh new look for our growing brand. We needed a distinctive symbol that could carry the Gladstone Vineyard story to the world.

And so our new logo was born.

You will note the emphasis on our name – Gladstone Vineyard. Gladstone is a growing wine region but there is only one Gladstone Vineyard.  Watch out for our new branding on our labels, website, packaging and advertising over the next few months.

The first of our wines in their 'new clothes' has just been released, the Gladstone Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2009 and the Gladstone Vineyard Pinot Gris 2009.  These beautiful and elegant wines follow in the footsteps of their illustrious predecessors. 

Handcrafted with elegance, style and texture these wines are true to the vineyard.  These are now available to purchase at cellar door or direct from our website.

Gladstone Vineyard’s Pinot Noir has scooped gold for a fifth consecutive year, collecting its latest accolade from one of the most prestigious and influential independent wine competitions, the International Wine Challenge in London.   We are  thrilled to receive recognition for the 2008 Gladstone Vineyard Pinot Noir at such a well regarded competition.  But we’re even more elated that this award cements Gladstone Vineyard’s record for consistently producing Pinot Noir at the top level. It’s proof – if we needed it – that Wairarapa Pinot Noir ranks among the world’s best.

The judges described Gladstone Vineyard’s Pinot Noir 2008 as “Lovely, smoky bacon and vegetal character. Soft, quivering mid palate. Lots of fruit delivery and lovely tannins. Excellent expression of Pinot.”

The International Wine Challenge is a renowned international wine contest, which takes place annually in London. With more than 10,000 entries, it is the biggest blind tasting in the world.   Don't miss out, buy some of this world beating Pinot Noir here!

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Vintage 2010 harvest promised much for an unabated record of world beating Pinot Noir.  After a cool summer, autumn was warm and benign and let the fruit ripen nicely. The weather was magnificent during harvest, enabling us to pick when we wanted to optimise fruit flavours and ripeness. The longer, cooler ripening period encourages good flavour development in the grapes at lower potential alcohol levels, so we are optimistic for very good quality wines from 2010.

These conditions made for a slightly longer and later, but very relaxed harvest.  Gerhard was joined in the winery by Craig Anderson, a Kiwi who had found himself working in big Australian wineries and was needing to get back to the 'real oil'.  Kyle and his regular vineyard crew of Shane and Vicky took my nephew Iain, from Scotland, under their wing, out here on some OE after university.

We decided to start any machine harvesting around 4am this year.  This means we have the advantage of picking the fruit at a reasonably cool temperature, and also that we start the run of several press cycles around 6.30am and can work most of it through the day and early evening.  It does mean an early start for all, particularly for the vineyard team.  No wonder that tummies are rumbling around 9.30am on these days.  My big brekkie became a bit of a favourite - bacon, eggs, beans, sausages, mushrooms and hash browns were much enjoyed.  Next year we'll introduce them all to some black pudding too! 

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We've got some great events at the Gladstone Vineyard Café this winter, including:

• Ray Henwood’s ‘All the World's a Stage' on Friday 25 June 6.30pm - tickets $60 for the show and 3-course dinner.
• A Schoc Chocolate Degustation Dinner on Friday 9 July -  a gastronomic extravaganza of winter-warming food married with Greytown's divine Schoc chocolate and matched with our own superb wines. Details TBC.

Bookings are essential - call 06 379 8563 or email us. 

We've taken the opportunity with changes in our website to update our updates!  We will now be sending out two updates - the main Gladstone Vineyard Grapevine (this one) which will be sent out every few months and a What's Happening update to let locals know of events here at Gladstone Vineyard.  I've taken the liberty of subscribing all 'local' people (if I have those details, from Palmerston North to Bulls and down to Wellington) to the local events mailing list.  You can change what newsletter(s) you get (subscribe or unsubscribe) at any time on our website.

Thanks for your ongoing support of Gladstone Vineyard and our wines.  It's good to have you with us!

Yours aye