Single Vineyard Nelson Pinot Noir 2014
Single Vineyard Nelson Pinot Noir 2014
Tasting notes
A vibrant ruby red hue in the glass, this full bodied and expressive Pinot Noir from Nelson displays aromatic layers of dark fruit, bright cherry and subtle savoury oak. Richly textured and concentrated, the palate delivers intense dark berry fruits, black plum and subtle earthy notes. Elegantly balanced with smooth tannins and hints of spice, this generous wine leads to a long and lingering finish.
Winemaking
The grapes for this single vineyard wine are hand-harvested before being brought over to our modern winery located in Marlborough’s Awatere Valley. Small parcels from individual blocks are lightly crushed and destemmed into stainless steel open-top fermenters with minimal pumping or handling. The must is then held cold for around 6 days before being slowly warmed and inoculated with yeast specifically selected by our winemaker. The fermentation is carried out at warm temperatures of up to 35°C, which combined with regular gentle cap plunging and an extended maturation period on skins allows for a gentle and balanced extraction of colour and tannin. At the end of the maturation period the wine is drained and pressed without settling directly to French oak barriques. Left to develop over the cool winter months, the wine goes through a natural secondary malo-lactic fermentation in spring when the ambient temperature warms. Once this is complete each batch is rigorously tasted and graded - with only the best barrels
making it to the final blend. The resulting wine then cross-flow filtered without fining, before being bottled on the 1st April 2015.
Viticulture
Grown entirely on our stunning Whenua Matua vineyard located in the Upper Moutere area of Nelson, the grapes for this wine gain their intensity and structure from the sites heavy clay soils and abundant sunshine. Our vineyard crew’s attentive canopy management and timely viticultural practices of leaf plucking, shoot thinning and vine training aid in delivering clean, concentrated fruit to the winery at harvest. The 2013/2014 growing season in Nelson began with a warm and dry November and December, ensuring rapid early season growth. These warm and dry conditions continued throughout the summer resulting in an earlier than usual ripening period. Grapes from the Dijon clones 115 and 777, as well as clone 5 were all hand-harvested with picking starting on the 26th March, and completed by 4th April.
Analysis
Vintage: 2013
Alcohol: 14%
pH: 3.61
T/A: 5.0 g/L
R.S: Nil