GROWING SEASON

The 2023 growing season showed remarkable contrast across New Zealand: while the volatile weather (courtesy of La Nina weather pattern), high precipitation and cyclones were devastating Hawke's Bay and Gisborne, Central Otago enjoyed almost ideal growing conditions, apart from some precipitation during harvest. Despite lower maximum temperatures, there was moderate overall heat accumulation, and Pinot Noir harvest began early again for us, on April 4. However, the crop was notably smaller than in 2022, and the grapes showed excellent overall ripeness at lower brix accumulation.  

VINEYARD & WINERY PRACTICES

We believe wine should express where and when it is grown and made. We follow organic principles and then proceed further, nurturing the soil and indigenous microflora by making our own compost and planting native vegetation. Vine pruning, leaf pulling, straightening shoots, and harvesting are all done by hand. At least fourteen different areas of the vineyard are harvested and fermented individually in our winery that is adjacent to the vines. Small fermentations by native yeasts, worked by hand and exposed to ambient temperatures, articulate different facets of vineyard and vintage. Malolactic fermentation occurs naturally during the eleven months the wine is in barrel (primarily French oak, 22% new). We rack once in summer, use minimal sulfites, and do not fine or filter. 

TASTING NOTES

The 2023 growing season was close to optimal. With a small crop and moderate temperature conditions (which continued during the wild fermentations; most fermentation peak temperatures were under 28 deg C, a bit lower than usual). Elegant and restrained at first, the 2023 Estate Pinot Noir opens with dusty dark cherries, raspberries, earthy forest floor, and dried herbs. On the palate, deeper roasted notes and subtle minerality emerge, finishing with a touch of savoury, pithy bitterness. It’s a wine of quiet complexity and poise, showing hints of the brooding character that made the much heralded 2013 vintage so memorable - and promising to evolve beautifully with time.