Vintage

Following an average rainfall and relatively warm winter, it was again the spring weather leading up to flowering which caused issues. October was our third wettest on record (96mm v 62mm average) and November saw our second coldest maximum and minimum temperatures (19.3° v 20.9°, 9.6° v 10.9°), consequently the budburst interval (budburst-flowering) was our longest ever – 87 days v an average of 75 days – and flowering was our latest ever (5 December v our 21 November average). In the end, due to the excellent February and March, hang time (budburstharvest) was average – 205 days v an average of 204 days – and harvest date was close to average – 1 April v an average of 29 March. Yields are down because of the problems around flowering but summer and early autumn saw long, slow ripening – perfect for our Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Vineyards :: Clones

Hand picked 7 April 2017 :: 6.3 tonnes/ha (2.6 t/acre, ~37.8hl/ha)

Harvest date :: Yield

Following an average rainfall and relatively warm winter, it was again the spring weather leading up to flowering which caused issues. October was our third wettest on record (96mm v 62mm average) and November saw our second coldest maximum and minimum temperatures (19.3° v 20.9°, 9.6° v 10.9°), consequently the budburst interval (budburst-flowering) was our longest ever – 87 days v an average of 75 days – and flowering was our latest ever (5 December v our 21 November average). In the end, due to the excellent February and March, hang time (budburstharvest) was average – 205 days v an average of 204 days – and harvest date was close to average – 1 April v an average of 29 March. Yields are down because of the problems around flowering but summer and early autumn saw long, slow ripening – perfect for our Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Brix :: pH :: TA

20.2° (11.2° Baumé) :: 3.12 :: 8.7 g/l

Winemaking

Grapes hand-harvested in early April and transferred to press via gravity before being whole bunch pressed and the unsettled juice fermented by indigenous yeasts in old 228 litre French oak barrels. A 10 month aging in barrel with no bâtonnage to keep wines fresher and more taut. Natural partial (55%) malolactic fermentation before bottling lightly fined and filtered.

Winemakers

Sandro Mosele, Martin Spedding

Aging :: Oak

10 months :: old 228 litre French oak barrels

Malolactic

Partial (55%)

Residual sugar

Dry (<0.1 g/l)

Finished pH :: TA

3.28 :: 7.4 g/l

Alcohol

12.0% (7.1 standard drinks/750ml bottle)

Production

541 dozen :: bottled 19 February 2018 :: screwcap

Release date

June 2018

TASTING NOTES

The long and slow vintage has played into this wine’s favour, delivering a tension between acidity and texture that is genuinely enjoyable. A lift of passionfruit, lemon curd and a little meringue, the palate driven by taut, citrussy natural acidity but with a softer edge that makes it fresh and inviting. A stand-out.

Andrew Graham [May 2018, commissioned by TMBT]

Food :: Temperature

Coconut green prawn curry. Serve at 6–9°C

Best drinking

2018-2023