Winemaker Notes
After about fours days the grapes are inoculated with specific wine yeast and the fermentation begins. After two weeks, the wine is pressed off the skins and settled, before being racked to barrel and puncheon for malolactic fermentation and maturation.
Black red fruits and smoky, savoury characters show on the nose. The palate has dark cherry, hints of blackberry, spice, chocolate and vanilla pod filling out a savoury, earthy, well-balanced Pinot Noir.
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
Claire and Mike Allan planted their first vines at their home vineyard in Rapaura in 1994, now certified organic, as are their other sites that contribute to this pinot noir. It’s an old-fashioned pleasure, a savory red-fruited wine with earthy scents of veal stock, and tomato-like spice to the acidity. Firm, juicy and rich, this would match meaty roast game fish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a dark, rich wine. Crisp edges of acid and soft tannins frame black cherry and espresso notes on the midpalate, while the finish is broad and supple in texture. Drink now–2022.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
An icon and leading region of New Zealand's distinctive style of Sauvignon blanc, Marlborough has a unique terroir, making it ideal for high quality grape production (of many varieties). Despite some common generalizations, which could be fairly justified given that Marlborough is responsible for 90% of New Zealand's Sauvignon blanc production, the wines from this region are actually anything but homogenous. At the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, the vineyards of Marlborough benefit from well-draining, stony soils, a dry, sunny climate and wide temperature fluctuations between day and night, a phenomenon that supports a perfect balance between berry ripeness and acidity.
The region’s king variety, Sauvignon blanc, is beloved for its pungent, aromatic character with notes of exotic tropical fruit, freshly cut grass and green bell pepper along with a refreshing streak of stony minerality. These wines are made in a wide range of styles, and winemakers take advantage of various clones, vineyard sites, fermentation styles, lees-stirring and aging regimens to differentiate their bottlings, one from one another.
Also produced successfully here are fruit-forward Pinot noirs (especially where soils are clay-rich), elegant Riesling, Pinot gris and Gewürztraminer.