The fruit for this wine comes from a small parcel in the Byrne vineyard, located in the Conder’s Bend area of Marlborough.

The vines are managed organically and are planted on gravels that would have once been a river bed. The stoney soils provide both drainage and heat retention which are essential for this cooler site.

The grapes were hand-picked, whole-cluster pressed and taken straight to French barriques without any chemical additions. It was fermented with indigenous yeast in the barrels, helping to add complexity and texture, without dominating the nose.

The wine was left on yeast lees for fifteen months, which were stirred regularly. This meant that the yeast added both savoury notes and also served to work as a natural fining agent. After time in barrique it was gently racked then bottled without fining.

VARIETY: Sauvignon Blanc
WINEGROWING TEAM: Brian Bicknell, Phoebe Cathcart, our focused growers, and brilliant vintage staff
ALCOHOL: 13.8%
TITRATABLE ACIDITY: 6 g/L
RESIDUAL SUGAR: 2.3 g/L
BRIX AT HARVEST: 22.8
HARVEST: Hand-picked, 4 April

TASTING NOTE