PINOT NOIR 2014

IN THE GLASS

Clove, liquorice and red cherry play on the nose before opening to a generous berry-fruit mouthful with floral highlights. Full fruit flavours are balanced with spicy, charred oak characteristics that enhance and lengthen the palate. Drink now or cellar for up to five years. 

pH: 3.62, TA 4.8g/l, residual sugar: <1g/l, alcohol: 14%

IN THE WINERY

The fruit was crushed and destemmed with about 20% of the fruit left as whole berries. The fruit was gravity fed into small open top plastic fermenters. All clones were vinified and matured in separate batches and only blended together at the very last stage of winemaking. Yeasts were inoculated and the ferments plunged twice daily to help soft extraction of colour and tannins from the skins. We gave a post-ferment maceration for up to two weeks to allow optimal body and structure in the wine. The wine was then matured in individual batches for 10 months before final blending. The wine is a true expression of minimalist intervention, site-specific winemaking.

IN THE VINEYARD

The grapes were grown at our various Dakins Road blocks. A variety of clones (Dijon, 10/5 and Abel) give a well-balanced wine that expresses opulent, dark fruit and savoury, spicy elements. We hand picked all the fruit and processed it with utmost care to ensure maximum quality and site expression.

PINOT GRIS 2014

AWARDS & ACCOLADES

Silver Medal, NZ International Wine Show 2014

IN THE GLASS

pH: 3.38, TA 4.57g/l, residual sugar: 4.52g/l, alcohol: 13.0%

IN THE WINERY

The grapes arrived at the winery in perfect condition and were quickly processed to ensure there was no loss of quality . Soft pressing was used so that no harsh tannins were extracted from the skins. The juice was chilled to 8°C for three days for cold settling to take place and to remove any unwanted solids. The clean juice was then fermented in stainless steel tanks at different temperatures to give a greater complexity of flavours. The wine remained on the lees for up to two months after fermentation to help build the palate weight and texture before final clarification and bottling.

IN THE VINEYARD

The grapes were grown at the Boyd, Cliffs, Manaia Road and Winery blocks. The vines are all trained with 2-cane VSP trellis systems which allow optimal ripening with sufficient sunlight penetration and air movement through the canopy. After several years of careful management these vines are now almost self regulating to ensure an optimal balance of crop size and perfect ripening. Individual blocks were harvested and processed separately to ensure maximum quality and site expression.

SAUVIGNON BLANC 2014

AWARDS 

Bronze Medal Easter Show Wine Awards 2015
Wine Orbit 90/100 points

IN THE GLASS

A typical Wairarapa Sauvignon Blanc tropical nose of guava, pineapple and pomelo. There is a citrus note of lemon peel that complements the typical minerality and length of the palate. The wine is crisp and fresh with a restrained elegance. Drink now, or cellar for up to two years.

pH: 3.17, TA 6.72g/l, residual sugar: 0.87g/l, alcohol: 12.84%

IN THE WINERY

The grapes arrived at the winery in good condition and were quickly processed to maintain quality. We used soft pressing to ensure harsh tannins weren't extracted from the skins. The juice was chilled to 8°C for three days to enable cold settling and remove any unwanted solids. We then fermented the clean juice in multiple stainless steel tanks at different temperatures using different specialised yeasts to give a greater complexity of flavours. The wine remained on the lees after fermentation to build the palate- weight and texture before final clarification and bottling.

IN THE VINEYARD