Mt Difficulty - 2013 Single Vineyard Bannockburn Pinot Noirs

2013 SINGLE VINEYARD COLLECTION

2013 THE VINTAGE

The growing season in 2013 kicked off with a cool spring.

Frosts in early November reduced production from Station Block, at the top of the Cromwell basin, but Bannockburn was untouched. Although the cool spring continued after that, temperatures warmed just before Christmas in time to make for a very successful flowering. January was cooler and wetter than average and then February onwards was very warm and dry. We experienced a protracted veraison (the point at which the grapes stop growing and start to ripen, characterised by colour change) leading to increased variability in ripeness. To counter this we introduced a late colour thin to ensure fruit arrived in optimal condition at harvest. Early autumn returned to more classic settled Central autumnal conditions, and harvest started on the 3rd of April, continuing through until the 3rd of May. It was a normal yielding year, with nice focused acidity and interesting flavour profiles reflecting, to some degree, the variability of the season.

WINEMAKING CONSIDERATIONS

We started harvesting our Pinot Noir from April 6th and continued through to April 22nd, this long picking period is partially due to the extended veraison. Where possible we try to co-ferment different clonal lots from the same vineyard, while vineyards are kept separate. Around two thirds of our ferments were de-stemmed only; the remaining third contained 20-35% whole clusters. The must underwent 9-10 days of cold maceration, being hand plunged once daily. The ferments were heated after this and all fermented with indigenous yeasts. The ferments lasted for an average of 8-10 days during which time they were hand plunged once to twice daily with the temperature peaking at 31ËšC. The wine stayed on skins for a further 7-9 days post-dryness, and was plunged once daily with increasing ease. When the wine tasted in harmony it was pressed off to barrel where it resided on full lees for 1w6 months. It underwent malolactic fermentation in the spring, was racked out of barrel the following winter and filtered prior to bottling.

MT DIFFICULTY

LONG GULLY PINOT NOIR Long Gully has Lochar soils with thin and wavy clay pans which are deep enough to cause no impediment to roots or drainage. These are well-drained, high pH soils ideally suited to viticulture. They generally have a 30cm depth of top soil over fine to moderately coarse gravels. The majority of the fruit in the Long Gully Pinot Noir is from vines that are 18-21 years old with a smattering from vines that are 15 years old.

TASTING NOTES

Crisp blackberry and Bing cherry interplay with baronial floral notes alongside an assemblage of sweet brown spices. These same lifted dark cherry and berry notes dominate the entry onto the palate; there’s a classic Long Gully dense mid-palate with flow and texture. The wine finishes strongly with a lovely tension present right through the fine-grained tannins and spicy dark berry fruit.

CELLARING POTENTIAL

Mt Difficulty Long Gully Pinot Noir will improve for 10 – 15 years given optimal cellaring conditions.

T/A 5.3 gL-1

pH 3.65

Residual Sugar <1 gL-1

Available September 2016

Elevation 220m

Aspect

Soil type

Lochar

Clones

6, 10/5

North facing

Rootstock Own

Vine Density

Low

Vineyard planted

1992

First crop

1995

First SV wine

2005

Vineyard management

2013

Alc. 14%

Organic

Irrigation Drip

Yield

Oak treatment

Time in oak

5 t/ha French 15 months

MT DIFFICULTY

TARGET GULLY PINOT NOIR Target Gully is also comprised of Lochar soils, however higher in elevation, and with about 30cm of top soil over fine to moderately coarse gravels. The fruit for this wine comes from 17-18 year old vines with mixture of traditional clones.

2013

Aspect

Soil type

Clones

This vintage shows broad textured red cherry and berry fruits alongside a distinctive liquorice / anise spice character. The wine displays a dense supple red fruit of the forest entry, which moves into a rich and sensuous midpalate then finishes strongly with a combination of fruit and finely grained tannin. The wine moves seamlessly and lithely on the palate.

CELLARING POTENTIAL

Mt Difficulty Target Gully Pinot Noir will improve for 10-15 years given optimal cellaring conditions.

T/A 5.1 gL-1

pH 3.68

Residual Sugar <1 gL-1

Available September 2016

Lochar 5, 6

Rootstock Own Vine Density

Vineyard planted

1994

First crop

1997

First SV wine

Vineyard management

TASTING NOTES

North facing

Alc. 14%

Elevation 280m

Low

2000 Sustainable

Irrigation Drip

Yield

Oak treatment

Time in oak

5.5 t/ha French 15 months

MT DIFFICULTY

PIPECLAY TERRACE PINOT NOIR Pipeclay Terrace vineyard is made up of coarse, droughtprone Bannockburn soils and Scotland Point soils.

Bannockburn soils have a very low water holding capacity while the opposite is true of the Scotland Point soils, so irrigation systems have been designed to handle the very different requirements of each soil type. The fruit that contributed to this Pinot Noir comes from vines planted in 1996, so they were 17 years old in 2013.

Elevation 250m Aspect

Fine Bannockburn & Scotland Point

5, 6, 13

Clones

Rootstock Own

Vine Density

Vineyard planted

1996

First crop

1999

First SV wine

2000

Vineyard management

2013 TASTING NOTES

This vintage shows classic high tone violet florals that are intermingled with Bing black cherry and blackberry notes with an edge of sweet brown spice. The wine displays lovely flow with a dense dark berry entry which moves into a rich and sensuous mid-palate.

The wine finishes strongly with a combination of fruit and finely grained slightly edgy structural tannin.

It exhibits lovely balanced and an element of grace.

CELLARING POTENTIAL

Mt Difficulty Pipeclay Terrace Pinot Noir will improve for 10 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 15 years given optimal cellaring conditions.

Alc. 14%

T/A 5.4 gL-1

pH 3.67

Residual Sugar <1 gL-1

Available September 2016

North facing

Soil type

Low

Sustainable

Irrigation Drip

Yield

Oak treatment

Time in oak

4.17 t/ha French 15 months

MT DIFFICULTY

MANSONS FARM PINOT NOIR Mansons Farm is made up of two soil types: fine Bannockburn soil - classified as anthropomorphic (manmade) and Molyneux soils - gravels formed from schist and greywacke with a thin cover of silt or sand. They are drought-prone and not fertile, but are suitable to deep-rooted crops when managed carefully. The Pinot Noir vines on Mansons Farm are clones 113, 114 and 115.

2013

CELLARING POTENTIAL

Mt Difficulty Mansons Farm Pinot Noir will improve for 10 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 15 years given optimal cellaring conditions. pH 3.68

Elevation 220m Aspect

Residual Sugar <1 gL-1

Available March 2017

North facing

Soil type

Fine Bannockburn & Scotland Point

113, 114, 115

Clones

Rootstock Own

Vine Density

Vineyard planted

2000

First crop

2004

First SV wine

2013

Mansons Farm Pinot Noir is hand crafted in very limited quantities, this is its inaugural release. For this cooler vintage, lovely violet floral notes co-mingle with raspberry and red cherry alongside an assemblage of sweet brown spices. These same lifted floral and red berry notes dominate the entry onto the palate, dense mid-palate with flow, texture and fine structure building early. The wine finishes strongly with a lovely tension present right through the persistent fine-grained tannins and spicy red berry fruit.

T/A 5.2 gL-1

Vineyard management

TASTING NOTES

Alc. 14%

Low

Sustainable

Irrigation Drip

Yield

Oak treatment

Time in oak

5.3 t/ha French 15 months

73 Felton Road Bannockburn Central Otago +64 3 445 3445 cellar.door@mtdifficulty.co.nz

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