Starborough Family Estate Marlborough Pinot Noir 2020

Description

• French oak
• Red cherry
• Dried herbs
• Fine tannins

"Attractively fruited and elegantly complex, the wine shows spiced cherry, game, roasted almond and dark mushroom characters with a hint of dried herb notes. It's beautifully rounded and supple on the palate delivering succulent fruit intensity together with fine texture and polished tannins. At its best: now to 2025" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Jun 2021

An elegant wine delivering a perfumed bouquet of red cherry and dark plum with subtle spicy and dried herb notes. The succulent palate has rich sweet flavours of bright red cherry and berry fruit interwoven with spice and red liquorice. The fine tannins structure and balanced acidity flow to a silky smooth finish. 

The yeild on the spur pruned (O'Dwyers Farm Vineyard) and 2 cane VSP (Long Lane Vineyard) trained vines were closely monitored through the growing season. Targeted shoot and bunch thinning was performed to produce low yeilding intensely concentrated fruit. Additional fruit thinning was done on colour development post veraison to further enhance bunch uniformity. The low yeilding vines of clone 115, 667 and 777 were carefully monitored during ripening and hand-picked at peak maturity and flavour development.

The whole clusters were gently de-stemmed before undergoing fermentation by naturally occuring 'wild' vineyard yeast. The resulting wine was aged in both new 20% and seasoned French barrels for 11 months with intermittent stirring of the malolactic lees for increased palate weight and mouth feel. The wine was bottled in March.