Decibel Giunta Hawkes Bay Pinot Gris 2021

Description

• Dry style
• French oak
• Pear & quice jelly
• Vibrant

This wine has both refined, streamlined fruit notes and an underlying wild complexity. Notes of yellow apples, crisp pears, quince jelly, cool spice, and cinnamon are juxtaposed with hints of yeast autolysis, flint, and jasmine. The entry into the palate is soft but fresh and meets the aromatics with style. The finish is vibrant leaving both a sense of sweetness in the front palate and perk on the finish. Drink now but will age beyond its expectations. 

Hawke's Bay lies on the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The region enjoys dry summers with moderate, cool nights. This wine reflects a single vineyard Pinot Gris which was grown in the Eskdale Appellation of Hawke's Bay. The vineyard lies along the Esk River Valley about 3 kilometeres from the mouth that empties into the Pacific Ocean. The soils are a combination of silt and loam deposited from the river and heavier deposits at the foot of the Esk Valley hills. The vineyard has begun its journey into organic farming with no weed sprays and the use of an under-vine mower. 

The Pinot Gris was harvested with an average harvest Brix of 20.5º and picked with a fresh acidity to give the finished wine some finesse and keep the alcohol in balance. They chose to machine harvest the fruit and allow the juice to soak freely on skins for about 6 hours before pressing. The free-run juice and light pressings were fermented in stainless steel using an organic inoculated yeast and fermented slow and cool to relative dryness. The pressings went into 10 year old French Puncheons (500 litre oak) where they fermented wild, each with their own hint of sweetness and character left behind in the wine.