Astrolabe Province Marlborough Pinot Noir 2017

Description

• Smoky oak
• Dark cherry & plum
• Spice & herbs
• Silky & linear tannins

"An attractive, fruity, floral and varietal bouquet with aromas of ripe red berry fruits, red plum and currant wrapped up in a shroud of toasty wood spices. Youthful, tense, fruity and dry on the palate. Dark cherry and baking spices, plum and toasty wood, tart strawberry and stony minerality. Well made, but very youthful and tense with firm tannins and plenty of acidity. Ready now with food, best from 2022 through 2026+" Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier, Oct 2020

“This soft, smooth, velvety and complex four-year-old Pinot Noir comes from this county’s biggest wine region and one of its best-known wineries, Astrolabe.  It’s made from hand-picked grapes, 85% from the Southern Valleys and 15% from the Kekerengu Coast.  Wild yeast fermentation and ageing for 10 months in French oak barriques add up to a superlative Pinot Noir that highlights Marlborough’s potential for exceptional Pinot.  Bravo, Simon Waghorn and the Astrolabe team" Joelle Thomson, Drinksbiz, Jun 2021

"I seek to maintan svelte plushness and good length in my pinot noir and a natural vibrancy of fruit. I am looking for a brighter and more lively style of pinot noir built around a core of red cherry flavours. It is all about life in the fruit, good acidity and plush drinkability" Simon Waghorn, Winemaker

This Pinot Noir is a bright deep garnet colour with aromas of ripe dark and red cherry, brambly fruits, spice and leather, with a hint of smoky oak. A full-bodied wine with round, mouth-filling flavours of plum, brambly fruit, dark cherry and a hint of savoury herbs. The oak integrates nicely with the fruit and the silky and linear tannin structure. 

In Marlborough, pinot noir sets fruit well enough to crop-thin down to low levels and get even fruit ripeness at harvest. They know they are thinning the crop down from what was set at fruit set, so they can manipulate the crop load drastically and have a lot of room to fine-tune crop-loading. The Astrolabe Marlborough Pinot Noir is made from grapes grown across the province: in the lower Waihopai and Wairau Valleys, the upper Brancott Valley and the Kekerengu Coast. 

The grapes were hand-picked, fermented at warm temperature with wild yeast in open-top vessels and aged for 11 months in oak barrels. In the winery, they take great care to handle the fruit in a way which allows the flavours and aromas of the region to come through. 

Food Pairing: Venison, duck, game, roasted betrrot, rare and tender lamb, and earthy wild mushrooms.