Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 3 2008

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Starting at: $74^.99

1 Review

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Winery:

Felton Road Wines

Varietal:

Pinot Noir

Region:

New Zealand > Central Otago

Type:

Red Wine

Color:

UPC:

 

User Tags:  stone fruits, color descriptors, fruit, poultry, game, soil, rich, spicy, (tree) fruit, cherry 

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What to Expect

Pinot Noir: Responsible for some of the greatest wines on earth - the exhausted red wines of France's Burgundy region. Pinot Noir is a notoriously fickle grape that expresses its origins like no other. It's a vine that needs to struggle to produce great wines but when it does the depth of flavors that range from cherry to cola can be explosive and the wines' bright acidity and gentle tannins make them approachable and widely appealing,

Winemakers Notes

Felton Road winery is located in Bannockburn, Central Otago, the most southerly wine-growing region in the world. Here, vineyards are nestled into small microclimates totally surrounded by high mountains, many of which are snow-capped all year round. Though the location is on the edge of sustainable viticulture these microclimates consistently combine hot days, cool nights and long dry autumns: perfect for the creation of fine Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Riesling. The latitude of 45 degrees south is similar to the Willamette Valley in Oregon and some of the finest wine regions of France. read more...Central Otago is New Zealand's only wine region with a continental climate rather than a maritime one. This brings the risk of frosts but has the benefit of low rainfall and high sunshine hours. Of the five distinct microclimates so far identified in Central Otago, Bannockburn, with its gentle north facing slopes and deep loess soils seems well suited to the production of complex Pinot Noir. Viticulture makes extensive use of handwork and is heavily influenced by organic practice. The canopies use the Vertical Shoot Position trellis system with all pruning, positioning, shoot thinning, leaf plucking and fruit thinning performed carefully by hand. Cover crops are used to supply a natural biodiversity in the vineyard which aids vine balance as well as helping control disease and pests. The use of natural manure obtained from organic sources aids the “gentle touch” approach to the vines. Harvesting is by hand starting around the beginning of April and each block is harvested and vinified separately. A three level gravity-flow winery has been specifically created to make wine by hand in the gentlest way possible. When making Pinot Noir, fruit passes by gravity to fermenters to prevent pumping of must. Fruit is not crushed so it ferments as whole berries while the use of a percentage of whole bunches adds complexity and structure. Using wild yeasts for the fermentation is an important part of the natural wine making philosophy, with wines being rested outdoors in small fermenters for extended maceration with up to four punch downs per day, before being run by gravity to barrel. All the barrels are Burgundian coopered, three-year air dried (typically 30% new oak each vintage) and selected for their slow extraction and subtlety of flavour.    (hide)

Editorial Reviews

Gregory-
Dal Piaz

Hand of Snooth Voice of Snooth

7,118

This smells rich and dense and sacrifices some of the transparency of the other Felton Road Pinots for that extra bit of richness. There are hints of cola and juniper on the nose with a touch of licorice accenting the plummy, dark berry fruits. The texture is soft and voluptuous with a nice spicy accent on the backend leading to rich finish with good sweet/sour tension and an earthy finale. 91pts

September 2009

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