• French oak
• Rose petal & thyme
• Strawberry & cherry
• Silky tannins

"Even red colour with slight garnet hues, lighter on the rim with a suggestion of bricking. The nose is full and voluminous with ethereal aromas of savoury red berry fruit entwined with dark and dried herbs, along with whole bunch stalk perfumes and a little game. The aromatics are expansive with a fine core. Medium-bodied, the palate has mouthfilling ethereal flavours of savoury strawberry and cherry fruit with an array of red florals. The wine has a very fine core and heart underlined by very fine-grained, powdery tannin providing plenty of texture, structure and fine grip. Whole bunch stalk flavours and dried herbs with a little game emerges forming a complex layering, and the wine flows with good lacy acidity to a long, elegant finish. This is an ethereal and voluminous Pinot Noir will a full and complex aromatic profile with savoury dried herbs, whole bunch notes and game on a very fine-grained palate. Match with game bird dishes over the next 5-6+ years. Hand-picked fruit, clones 667, 777 and 114 from the ‘Somerset’ vineyard, Waihopai, indigenous yeast fermented with 15% whole bunches and a high proportion of whole berries to 12.5% alc., the wine aged 17 months in 15% new French oak. 256 cases made" Raymond Chan, Jul 2018

Deep red colour with a crimson hue in the glass. The fruit from the clay bound Somerset vineyard consistently produces a Pinot Noir that is a true expression of the vineyard and terroir. Intense red fruits, perfumed violet and delicate rose petal with an underlying wild thyme aromatic create a nose that is pure and classic. Concentrated red fruit characters follow through on the palate, combined with an array of sweet spice and elegant silky soft tannins the result is a rich, lifted and highly complex wine.

The Pinot Noir grapes were hand harvested from the winemakers Somerset vineyard, on the Waihopai Valley Road, Marlborough. The soil is 1 m of stony loam over a heavy Waihopai clay/gravel pan. The vineyard was not irrigated over the growing season.

85% was destemmed without crushing and the remaining 15% as whole cluster. 6 day pre fermentation soak, followed by natural yeast fermentation. Fermentation lasted 6 days. Hand plunged. Rested on its skin. Gently pressed & transferred to barrel. Natural malolactic fermentation initiated itself, finishing end Jan 2014. July 2014 the young wine was removed from barrel and prepared for bottling in Aug 2014.