2023 Vinification Notes

The 2023 vintage was yet another cool La Niña season. A late budburst was matched by an even later harvest (our latest on record) ensuring a long, slow ripening process. Spring was cool and wet, requiring a lot of vineyard management. It warmed up and dried out in mid January but overall summer was moderate and variable which enabled a late harvest. Bunches were quite small and overall yield was kept very low to ensure the vines were in balance and could achieve full physiological ripeness.

Less than 1.5 tonne of fruit (1 tonne/acre) was hand harvested on 20 April. Fermentation was undertaken with whole berries and a small amount of whole bunches. The resulting wine matured for 11 months in used Sirugue oak barrels before blending in tank for a further five months. All in all, we have taken a lighter hand in this vintage compared to prior. The finished wine was bottled in late September 2023 under gravity and without fining or filtration.