Pinot Noir 2006

 
Consultant to Winemaker: Michelle Richardson

Vineyard notes:
The grapes for this wine came from our Bannockburn Estate Vineyards and our Lowburn Estate Vineyard. The Bannockburn vineyard is composed of predominantly Dijon clone vines and Lowburn is planted mainly in clones 5 and 6. The spring weather over the 2005/06 season was unusually warm and settled, with higher average temperatures overall. This resulted in higher yields, with a larger crop than is typically seen in Central Otago; with both larger berries and bunch weights. The hot summer allowed the grapes to reach full physiological maturity much earlier than normal, being hand harvested in late March and early April.

Winemaking considerations:
Eleven different fermentations were undertaken for this blend from different clones, in stainless steel open top fermenters. The must was left for 5-7 days on cold soak, and pumped over once initially, and then plunged twice daily during this time. The vessels were warmed and inoculated with yeast to ferment the wines to dryness. The wines were plunged three times a day for the first third of the ferment, and then this rate was increased to four plunges per day at ferment peak. Fermentation temperature peaked at 32° Celsius and plunging continued until the ferments were dry.

Post maceration took place for 7-10 days post ferment, and tasted daily once dry until the tannins were homogenised. The wines spent an average of 3 weeks on skins to extract tannin, colour and aromatics. The wines were then gently drained and pressed, and tank settled for 2-3 days, then racked to 225 litre French oak barriques, of which 30% were new oak. The wines were kept cool and humid in the barrel hall until spring, topped frequently, with lees stirring taking place during elevage. The room was then warmed and the barrels underwent malo-lactic fermentation. The wines were then racked out of barrel and blended in tank in February, before undergoing egg-white fining and cross-flow filtration; then bottled in late March.

Aromatic and Palate Comments:
This wine displays an intense perfumed bouquet of black flesh fruit and spice character and a brilliant depth of colour. With a deep concentration of fruit and silky careful structured tannins, this wine will develop wonderfully from the Christmas cake elements of fruits to more complex savoury tones as it matures. A wine to enjoy with an array of prime meats and cheeses and will reward with careful cellaring.