Starborough Pinot Noir is a fragrant Pinot Noir that shows complex aromas of red and dark fruits complemented with savoury, earthy notes and a hint of wild thyme. The palate is ripe with fruit richness and lively flavours of dark raspberries and plum backed with soft, seductive tannins and a lovely hint of pepper on the finish.
The fruit was sourced from two individual Starborough vineyards. 75% from O’Dwyers Farm Vineyard in the heart of the Wairau Valley and 25% from Long Lane Vineyard (Awatere Valley) located on the southern banks of the Awatere River. Both sites provide the perfect conditions for growing premium cool climate Pinot Noir.
The yield on the spur pruned (O’Dwyers Farm Vineyard) and two cane VSP (Long Lane Vineyard) trained vines were closely monitored through the growing season. Targeted shoot and bunch thinning was performed to produce low yielding intensely concentrated fruit.
Additional fruit thinning was done on colour development post veraison to further enhance bunch uniformity.
The low yielding vines of clone 115, 667 and 777 were carefully monitored during ripening and hand-picked at peak maturity and flavour development.
The whole clusters were gently de-stemmed before undergoing fermentation by naturally occurring ‘wild’ vineyard yeast. The resulting wine was aged in both new 35% and seasoned French barrels for 11 months with intermittent stirring of the malolactic lees for increased palate weight and mouth feel.
The wine was bottled in March with an alcohol of 14.0%, pH 3.6 and acidity of 5.8 g/l.
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