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Tasting Notes

We are pleased to present tasting notes for a full range of our products.

Cheers!

Winemakers comments:
The 2003-2004 season started promisingly with warm and settled conditions. Dry, warm to hot conditions prevailed through December and the first half of January increasing expectations for a typical droughty summer. Between the 18th of January and the 29th of February we received 308mm of rain, including 110 mm from the 14th to the 16th of February when much of the lower North Island experienced serious flooding. Fortunately, March and April reverted to a more normal pattern with close to average rainfall but cooler than average temperatures which delayed the start of harvest by two weeks. Somewhat surprisingly, overall heat summation was almost identical to 2003, which allowed all varieties to reach our normal ripening targets albeit at higher than usual acid levels (the legacy of lower sunshine hours). Overall quality looks at this stage to be good to very good, a result we would not have believed possible at the end of February.

Short description:
Rich and complex with great depth of intense spicy and mealy flavours underpinned by refined tight-grained French oak, barrel
fermentation and subtle malolactic fermentation characters. Demands aging and will improve in the cellar for 5-7 years.

Winemaking:
100% barrel fermented - tight-grain French oak barriques (50% new, 50% 1 use). 100% malolactic fermentation. All barrels lees-stirred monthly. Total time in barrel - 18 months. Minimum 6 months in bottle prior to release.

Winemakers comments:
The 05-06 growing season saw a return to more typical weather patterns after the volatility of the previous two seasons. Early season conditions were benign with fewer than average frost events and not much wind. December was very warm and dry raising expectations for a good flowering and more generous yields than 2005. January and February were warm and very dry, in fact a typical Martinborough Summer. March was slightly cooler than average but ripening was well advanced and the cooler conditions took the pressure of what was already looking to be a very early vintage.

Conditions over harvest were dry and settled. Harvest commenced on the 25th of March, our earliest start since 1998. While quality across the varieties looks outstanding, quantities were variable. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir were disappointing at 2 tonnes per acre and 1.3 tonnes per acre respectively. Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc redressed the balance with slightly above average yields (3 tonnes and 4 tonnes per acre respectively).

My final comment is unchanged from last year; there will not be much wine from the 2006 vintage but what there is will be among the best we have produced.

Short description:
A rich, succulent and powerful Martinborough Pinot Noir showing dark berry and spice flavours underpinned by silky tannins and subtle, refined oak from barrel maturation. May be cellared with confidence for a minimum of 3-5 years.

Winemaking:
Fruit de-stemmed only. 7 days cold maceration prior to ferment. Total maceration time 18-21 days. Malolactic fermentation in barrel - tight-grain French oak barriques (25% new). Total time in barrel - 18 months. Unfined and unfiltered. Minimum 3 months in bottle prior to release.

Winemakers comments:
Outstanding quality, disappointing quantity is the story of the 2003 vintage. The culprit on the quantity side was frost with the Spring of 2002 delivering the worst series of frosts the region has experienced since 1992. With the help of helicopters and frost pots, significant damage was limited to one Chardonnay block although all crops were reduced with Riesling being particularly affected. To balance the equation the rest of the growing season was much kinder. The latter part of Spring and the whole of Summer were very dry. Summer temperatures and sunshine hours were close to 10% above average. Autumn was cooler than average but long and dry which was perfect for ripening. The low crop levels and warm growing season produced grapes of outstanding quality with piercing flavours and great structure. The 2003 vintage, at least from a quality standpoint, looks likely to be a Martinborough classic.

Short description:
Concentrated lime and mineral aromas and flavours. Elegant, tightly structured Martinborough Riesling. May be cellared with confidence for a minimum of 5 years.

Winemaking:
Whole-bunch pressed. Cool-fermented in stainless steel. Minimum 24 months in bottle prior to release.

Winemakers comments:
After the crop-depleting ravages of frost and cold weather at flowering, which bedeviled the previous three vintages, the 2007-2008 growing season saw a return to what we would like to think of as more normal conditions. We had the usual number of Spring frost events but, with the assistance of helicopters and frost pots, none were severe enough to cause any damage. Flowering conditions were benign with above average temperatures for November and December and fewer bouts of North-Westerly gales. As a result fruit set was the best since the bumper 2004 vintage. Drought conditions prevailed over the key January to March ripening period with regular irrigation needed to keep the vines in good health to ripen the crop. The warmth and low rainfall kept disease pressure completely out of the equation and meant we were able to harvest exactly when we wanted to.

Harvest commenced slightly earlier than average on the 26th of March and we picked our final grapes exactly a month later with the last of the Pinot Noir coming in on the 26th of April. April rainfall was higher than average but as it fell later in the month and after we had harvested the potentially more botrytis-susceptible varieties it had little impact. It may seem contradictory but in warmer seasons we typically harvest at slightly lower sugar levels than cool seasons. 2008 certainly reflects that as the flavours we look to pick at arrived at lower sugar levels and also at better acid levels than we expected. Across all the varieties flavours in the juice were notably pure and fine and the tannin structure in the Pinot Noir should result in silky, seductive wines. Despite the warmth of the season I expect the wines of the 2008 vintage to be remembered more for their balance, purity and finesse rather than the blockbusters some might have anticipated.

Short description:
Green/gold. Exhibits typical regional characteristics of citrus fruits with notes of mineral and honey. Off-dry, the wine is soft-textured and finishes crisp and fresh.

Winemaking:
Whole-bunch pressed. Cool-fermented in stainless steel.

Winemakers comments:
After the crop-depleting ravages of frost and cold weather at flowering, which bedeviled the previous three vintages, the 2007-2008 growing season saw a return to what we would like to think of as more normal conditions. We had the usual number of Spring frost events but, with the assistance of helicopters and frost pots, none were severe enough to cause any damage. Flowering conditions were benign with above average temperatures for November and December and fewer bouts of North-Westerly gales. As a result fruit set was the best since the bumper 2004 vintage. Drought conditions prevailed over the key January to March ripening period with regular irrigation needed to keep the vines in good health to ripen the crop. The warmth and low rainfall kept disease pressure completely out of the equation and meant we were able to harvest exactly when we wanted to.

Harvest commenced slightly earlier than average on the 26th of March and we picked our final grapes exactly a month later with the last of the Pinot Noir coming in on the 26th of April. April rainfall was higher than average but as it fell later in the month and after we had harvested the potentially more botrytis-susceptible varieties it had little impact. It may seem contradictory but in warmer seasons we typically harvest at slightly lower sugar levels than cool seasons. 2008 certainly reflects that as the flavours we look to pick at arrived at lower sugar levels and also at better acid levels than we expected. Across all the varieties flavours in the juice were notably pure and fine and the tannin structure in the Pinot Noir should result in silky, seductive wines. Despite the warmth of the season I expect the wines of the 2008 vintage to be remembered more for their balance, purity and finesse rather than the blockbusters some might have anticipated.

Short description:
Green/gold. Exhibits typical regional characteristics of ripe passion fruit and gooseberries. The wine is fresh and full-bodied and carries ripe tropical flavours through the palate to a crisp, persistent finish.

Winemaking:
Cool-fermented in stainless steel tanks.