Sommit
2019 PURE DISCOVERY SOMMELIER WORKSHOP 27-5-19
Kia Ora, Thank you for joining us at the New Zealand Wine Sommit™ Pure Discovery Workshop. In early 2019, New Zealand Wine hosted five Australian sommeliers for the wine experience of a lifetime including Geek Out North Canterbury, the International Sauvignon Blanc Celebration, Chardonnay and Sparkling Wine Symposium and the fourth annual New Zealand Wine Sommit™. It was a pleasure to welcome this talented and passionate group of wine professionals to our side of the ditch. Over eleven days they explored the depth and breadth of New Zealand’s regions, varieties, landscapes and personalities that make our country and wine industry so special. A few months on, the Pure Discovery workshops provide an opportunity for scholarship recipients to share their insights with you and stimulate robust discussion on the place for New Zealand wine in the Australian market. Thank you to Stephanie Jacob who spent many hours creating and considering the exceptional wine list, and of course to the producers for supplying the wines, in some cases from their own personal library stock. We hope you enjoyed the workshop and please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions on the wines presented or the scholarship programme.
Natalie Grace New Zealand Winegrowers natalie.grace@nzwine.com #nzwine #sommit @nzwinegrowers @nzwineaus @nzwine @nzwineaus newzealandwinegrowers nzwine.com
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
1
OUR REGIONS AUCKLAND
GISBORNE
HAWKE’S BAY
CLIMATE Warm and relatively humid for the most part, rainfall can be high some seasons.
CLIMATE High sunshine hours and a warm climate. Surrounding ranges provide inland shelter; sea breezes cool coastal sites.
CLIMATE Extremely sunny, the maritime influence tempers hot summer days and permits a long growing season.
SOIL Extensive volcanic history has overlain ancient bedrock with much younger material, predominately clay soils. STYLE Home to powerful, intense Bordeaux Blends as well as world-class Syrah, Chardonnay and fine aromatics.
SOIL A mix of clay and silt loams SOIL The legacy of four major with fine silt river loams and rivers’ historic meanderings, heavier clay soils on the plains. Hawke’s Bay is a virtual WINE Chardonnay dominant, kaleidoscope of soil types. with Pinot Gris a close second. New varieties constantly explored.
WINE Best known for its Merlot Cabernet blends and Syrah, and equally impressive Chardonnay.
Hawke’s Bay
Image courtesy of Rod Mcdonald 2
Melbourne
WAIRARAPA
NELSON
MARLBOROUGH
CLIMATE A semi-maritime climate, with cool springs and autumns and hot summers with cool nights.
CLIMATE Blessed with a remarkable number of clear days, protection from strong winds and proximity to the sea.
SOIL Predominantly silt loam over free-draining gravels, some of which can be up to 15m deep courtesy of the rivers criss-crossing the region.
CLIMATE Plenty of sunshine, moderate temperatures, strong diurnal variation, cooling sea breezes and protective mountains.
SOIL Broadly gravelly silt-loam over a clay base, allowing good water-holding capacity.
WINE Standout Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and aromatics as well as stylish Chardonnay, Syrah and dessert wines.
WINE Excellent Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and aromatics are produced, alongside an impressive and eclectic mix of other varieties.
SOIL Ancient glacial deep freedraining stony soils. The extensive braided river system left a threaded legacy of stony sandy loam over very deep gravels. WINE Most recognised for Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough’s Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and aromatics are celebrated by those that discover them.
Marlborough
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
Image courtesy of Jules Taylor 3 Wines
Central Otago
Image courtesy of Mishas Vineyard
NORTH CANTERBURY
CENTRAL OTAGO
CLIMATE Low rainfall, abundant sunshine and often very warm summers, with cooling sea breezes.
CLIMATE Marked diurnal variation, high sunshine and short, hot summers provide an eloquent, if brutal, landscape for vines.
SOIL Gravel deposits from the river and limestone-derived clays on the hillsides.
SOIL Moderately old (often windblown loess) formed over successive ice ages as the glaciers ground schist rocks to a fine flour.
WINE Pinot Noir, aromatics and Chardonnay, renowned for their intense flavours, richness and complex fruit.
4
WINE Pinot Noir dominant, with incredible aromatics and Chardonnay also produced.
Melbourne
SPARKLING ON ARRIVAL
RRP $90 DISTRIBUTOR
Seeking distribution Virginie Le Brun virginie@no1wine.nz
No. 1 Reserve NV Marlborough
Each year, a limited amount of the No.1 Cuvée is set aside for long-term aging on lees and released after several years – giving it the title “Reserve”. This release of the No.1 Reserve is limited to 1000 bottles, which have been individually hand numbered and hand labelled.
6
100% Chardonnay 8 years on lees, disgorged May 2018 Analysis: 12.5% alc, 3.2 pH, 6.7g/L TA, 5.7g/L RS
@no1familyestate @no1familyestate wno1familyestate
Melbourne
FLIGHT ONE
SAUVIGNON BLANC NORTH TO SOUTH
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
7
RRP $32 DISTRIBUTOR
Joval Wine Group Mark Cunliffe mark.cunliffe@craggyrange.com
Craggy Range Te Muna Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Wairarapa
From the lower terrace of the Craggy Range Te Muna Road Vineyard in Martinborough, this wine is sourced exclusively from several parcels of vines growing on stony, limestone influenced soils.
Analysis: Hand harvested 15% Wholebunch 10%, Destemmed 90% Stainless steel tanks, French oak cuves and French oak barriques 12.7% alc, 3.36 pH, 6.5g/L TA, 2.5g/L RS
@craggyrange @craggyrange craggyrangewinery
8
Melbourne
RRP $88 DISTRIBUTOR
Luxury Beverage Group Peter Hasko phasko@luxurybeveragegroup.com
Clos Henri Single Vineyard ‘Stones’ Sauvignon Blanc 2016, Marlborough
In the French tradition, our vineyard is planted in high density to encourage competition between vines and restrain vigour. This natural vigour control means the vines put more energy into the grapes, rather than the canopy - concentrating the berries. Dry farming also helps keep vigour under control. By stressing the vines to just the right level, it forces the roots to go deeper in the soil, thereby getting the purest expression of our terroir and showing more minerality from the river stone soil.
Wild Fermentation occurred in 600L Austrian oak. The wine was then aged on fine yeast lees for 20 months with lees stirring, both of which enable us to obtain a round Sauvignon Blanc with body and mouthfeel. This fine wine is unfiltered with minimum handling. A production of only 701 bottles. Analysis: 13.5% alc, 3.18 pH, 7.5g/L TA, <0.5g/L RS
@closhenrivineyard @closhenri closhenrivineyard
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
9
RRP $55 DISTRIBUTOR
red+white Bree Richmond brichmond@redandwhite.com.au
Dog Point Section 94 Sauvignon Blanc 2009, Marlborough
Winemaking: eighteen months in older French Oak barrels Bouquet: Intense yellow fruits and aromatic nuances of white flowers are integrated with a degree of minerality against a background of lees complexity.
Palate: Unique full bodied sauvignon with considerable depth and complexity. The intense citrus and mineral flavours are complemented by a chalky textural lees influence resulting in a wine with concentration, focused structure and individuality. Analysis: 13.5% alc, 3.16 pH, 7.8g/L TA, 3.2g/L RS
@dogpointvineyard @dogpointwines dogpointvineyard
10 Melbourne
RRP n/a DISTRIBUTOR
Fesq & Co. David Fesq orders@cottenham.com.au
Pegasus Bay Sauvignon Semillon 2003, North Canterbury
Both the Sauvignon Blanc, which makes up 70% of the blend, and the Semillon, underwent natural fermentation by their indigenous yeasts. They were then aged separately on their natural yeast lees for 9 months to help develop structure, flavour complexity and length of palate. During this time the Sauvignon Blanc was in tank to help
retain its vibrant fruit freshness, while the Semillon was kept in old oak barriques to tease out flavour nuances and flesh out the body. The final assemblage was decided by taste. Analysis: 13% alc
@pegasusbaywine @pegasusbaywine pegasus-bay-winery-vineyard-and-restaurant
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
11
FLIGHT TWO
BEYOND MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC
12
Melbourne
RRP $29.99 DISTRIBUTOR
CellarHand Patrick Walsh sales@cellarhand.com.au
Te Whare Ra ‘Toru’ 2018, Marlborough
TORU - (which means “three” in Maori) is an aromatic blend created over 12 years ago and was the first of its kind in New Zealand. It is a delicious, co-fermented “field blend” of three varieties - Gewürztraminer, Riesling and Pinot Gris. All fruit was hand-picked and hand-sorted. All parcels were destemmed, lightly crushed and then pressed, some parcels had lengthier
skin-contact time. The wine was all cofermented. All parcels spent considerable time on lees after ferment for added texture and complexity. Co-fermentation is a key part of making Toru as it makes the three varieties much more integrated with each other. This wine has not been fined. Analysis: 13.3% alc, 3.38 pH, 5.0g/L TA, 7.0g/L RS
@tewharerawinesnz @tewharerawines tewharerawines
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
13
RRP $60 DISTRIBUTOR
Saint Wine Adam Partington adam@saintwine.com.au
Novum Chardonnay 2017, Marlborough
Fruit for this wine was grown on a beloved (and old) Chardonnay block located in the central Wairau plains planted entirely with the Mendoza clone. Originally an old river bed, this block is naturally warm day and night due to the radiating effect of the exposed greywacke rock lying beneath the vines. The rock radiates heat up into the canopy making this vineyard an ideal site for ripening Chardonnay.
resulting batch of juice was cold settled for 12 hours before been transferred to French oak barriques with light lees for fermentation. Lees stored from last year’s vintage was also added to the wine just prior to the wild fermentation kicking off. Post fermentation the wine remained on lees in barrel (10% new oak) with the lees stirred monthly on the full moon. Aged for 10 months in barrel.
The grapes were whole bunch pressed using a very low maceration press cycle. The
Analysis: 14.0% alc, 3.68 pH, 6.6g/L TA
@novumwinesnz novumwinesnz
14 Melbourne
RRP $39.99 DISTRIBUTOR
McWilliams Wines Group Ltd Erwin Magat emagat@mcwilliamswines.co.au
Framingham F-Series Spätlese 2012, Marlborough
Our strictly limited-edition F-Series range allows us to experiment.
With total freedom to create alternative takes on classic varietals, we can capture the unique nature of a vintage and allow for constant innovation.
@framinghamwines @framinghamwines framinghamwines
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
15
FLIGHT THREE NORTH CANTERBURY
16 Melbourne
RRP $30 DISTRIBUTOR
Saint Wine Adam Partington adam@saintwine.com.au
Mountford Estate Chardonnay 2018, North Canterbury
Soil: thin topsoil over clay with limestone shingle Aspect: gentle East-West slope Clone: Medoza and B95 Made from the original own rooted Chardonnay plantings at Mountford Estate in 1991. This wine is a barrel selection of the best blend of wine available for the vintage. Whole bunch pressed and settled for one
day before being racked off to barrel for fermentation (33% new). A portion of the wine is left to ferment wild to get the true characters from this amazing site. Post fermentation battonnage is done until the barrels start to go through natural Malolactic fermentation. After 11 months, the wine is racked and filtered before going to bottle with minimal sulphur. Analysis: 13.5% alc
@mountford_estate @mountfordestate mountfordestatewinery
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
17
RRP $130 DISTRIBUTOR
Imbibo Wines Cath Willcock cath@imbibo.com.au
Pyramid Valley Lion’s Tooth Chardonnay 2016, North Canterbury
Yields of 30 hl/ha from this steeply inclined, east facing home block. Beautiful soils, with nut and crumb structure and great mineral fertility: 30% clay, 15-20% active lime. Mid-April pick, whole bunch pressed. Vineyard yeast ferment of several months, half in clay giare, half in aged French demi-muids. Natural, spring malolactic fermentation.
Ten months on lees in barrel and clay, then bottled unfined and unfiltered. Bottled aged 1 year before release. 250 x 6-packs produced. Analysis: 14.6% alc
@pyramidvalleyvineyards @pyramidvalleynz pyramidvaleyvineyards
18
Melbourne
RRP $52 DISTRIBUTOR
Déjà vu Lynette Moore lmoore@dejavuwines.com.au
The Boneline Waimanu Pinot Noir 2016, North Canterbury
Vinification of this wine is still evolving as we learn to voice the sense of establishment that these old vines bring. We destem without crushing before ferment, then soak on skins for up to a week. A small portion we whole bunch ferment and work specifically to draw out aromatics and structure.
Primary ferments are fairly quick, hot and hand plunged, then sit on skins for a while, aiming for extraction levels just right for each vat. Wine then matures in Burgundian coopered French oak for a year before blending & bottling unfiltered. Analysis: 14.5% alc, 3.57 pH, 6.1g/L TA, <1g/L RS
@the_bone_line theboneline
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
19
RRP $30+ DISTRIBUTOR
Seeking Distribution Catherine Keith catherine@mountbrown.co.nz
Mount Brown Pinot Noir 2016, North Canterbury
The vines are predominantly Davis and Dijon clones; the Davis is slightly sweeter and the Dijon a more earthy flavour. The rootstock is Schwarzmann, a very low vigour dwarf rootstock. Fruit was destemmed into open top fermenters and cold soaked. The must
was hand plunged three times daily. A portion was wild fermented. Post ferment the wine remained on skins for up to ten days before the wine was gently pressed directly to French oak barriques. Malolactic fermentation was encouraged and completed by early spring.
ď&#x2026; @mountbrownestates ď&#x201A;&#x201A; mountbrownestates
20
Melbourne
FLIGHT FOUR TRIO OF SYRAH
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
21
RRP $85 DISTRIBUTOR
Not currently available in Australia annie.greenheld@foleywines.co.nz
Martinborough Vineyard Syrah Viognier 2013, Wairarapa
The 2013 vintage will go down as one of the great years for winegrowers in Martinborough. Long stretches of warm, sunny days were interspersed every four weeks or so with just enough rainfall to keep the vines in optimum condition. Conditions led to harvest arriving two weeks early and the vines producing some of the best fruit the region has ever seen.
Grapes were hand-picked, with 5% Viognier co-fermented with Syrah in the traditional Côte-Rôtie style. The wine was hand plunged and fermented on skins for 21 days. After pressing, the wine was transferred to French oak barrels were it was aged for 15 months before bottling. Analysis: 13.0% alc, 3.58 pH, 5.8g/L TA, <1g/L RS
martinboroughvineyard
22
Melbourne
RRP $120 DISTRIBUTOR
Beaune and Beyond Michael McNamara pws@princewinestore.com.au
Bilancia la collina Syrah 2014, Hawke’s Bay
The 2014 Hawke’s Bay vintage backed up the critically acclaimed 2013 harvest, again allowing viticulturalists and winemakers to revel in the joy of optimal conditions. 2014 la collina Syrah is similar to the 2013 in regard to very low production levels. The fruit was hand harvested from the terraces and crushed to open top fermentation tanks. As always, there is a small amount of Viognier included as co-ferment.
The ferments were hand plunged during fermentation. The wine was pressed off at dryness and sent to barrel; malolactic fermentation went through in barrel after the first winter. The winemaking philosophy is, and always has been, to preserve the very distinct vineyard character and fruit purity along with support from new but low impact French oak.
@bilancianz @bilancianz bilancianz
New Zealand Wine Pure Discovery Workshop
23
RRP $60 DISTRIBUTOR
Seeking distribution Michael Henley michael@aonzfinewine.com
Smith and Sheth Syrah 2015, Hawke’s Bay
15 year old Syrah vines from the stony river bed soils of the Gimblett Gravels sub region in Hawke’s Bay. Low cropping, de-vigourated vines allows for increase in concentration in resulting wines. Predominantly destemmed grapes were fermented without the use of cultured yeast
in open top vessels and punched down daily. Following pressing the wines went through MLF in tank before transferring to barriques for maturation (40% new) The wine was bottled after 18 months in barrique. Cases produced: 99 x 6packs. Analysis: 13.2% alc
@smithandsheth smithandsheth
24 Melbourne
ANTIPODES TURNING WATER INTO A WINE COMPANION
antipodes.co.nz @antipodes_water