From the vineyard

Due to receiving both the wettest and coolest spring since our vines have been in production, 2023 was unique from the get-go.  A prolific 423mm was received between September and November in comparison to the 100-year average of 196mm, over twice the average spring rainfall. Being also the coolest start on record, one benefit of the rain was that it kept the frosts away!  Thankfully the soils of our vineyard drain well, but still, they were put to the test as were our vineyard team who managed this spell extremely well.  Come summer, the rains eased dramatically, and in fact, remained well below the average until March.   So as the vines caught their breath, the cool theme, however, continued and every month of the 2023 growing season was cooler than usual, making it our coolest year on record. These cool, relatively dry conditions of autumn saw a build-up to harvest where patience was rewarded with the flavours that slowly but surely accumulated across the vineyard. With harvest beginning in mid-April, 2023 now stands as a beautifully fragrant vintage, blessed with vibrancy and depth of flavour that’s neatly tucked into a beautifully elegant medium-bodied frame that shows no sign of the trickier season from which it came.

From the winery

Our 2023 Pinot Gris consists of two separate batches representing two distinct approaches.  The first batch, representing 85% of the blend, was whole bunch pressed, and settled in tank for 24 hours before racking the cloudy juice to neutral French oak puncheons for indigenous fermentation.   The remaining amount remained as intact whole bunches that were left undisturbed for five weeks under carbonic conditions.  After that time, we then pressed this parcel into tank to conclude fermenting the last several grams of sugar.  Once dry, this parcel was then again racked to neutral French oak puncheons.  With a total of 6 months of maturation on lees, these parcels were blended, lightly filtered, and bottled.