Waipara Hills Waipara Valley Pinot Noir 2011

COLOUR

Medium density with red and purple hues.

NOSE

Lifted red fruits with hints of earth and spice from the oak.

PALATE

Soft and silky to start with then flows through to a firmer structure with dark fruits, dried spice and leather characters that linger and linger.

SERVE

Room temperature.

PEAK DRINKING

SUGGESTED FOOD MATCH

ALCOHOL VOLUME

14.0%

ACIDITY

6.0 g/L

RESIDUAL SUGAR

0.9 g/L

VINTAGE REGION

45% The Home Block Vineyard, 33% The Mound Vineyard, 8% The Deans Vineyard, 14% The Golden Terraces Vineyard

VINTAGE CONDITIONS

The bud break this year was late September early October followed by a settled and warm spring without any frost set backs. The plants enjoyed good growth. We went into an early flower set, the earliest on our records and also one of the best. The summer and ripening season were dry and cool. Throough the growing season we had 230mm or rain, the hottest month being December with an average temperature of 18 degrees.

GRAPE VARIETY

100% Pinot Noir

MATURATION

Each block of fruit was fermented seperately, with a seven day cold soak followed by a seven to ten day ferment. Most parcels were then pressed and settled for two days before either being run to barrels or to a full tank to await MLF later in the year. 30% was aged in barrels, the remainder was in tanks.