River Run Pinot Noir 2018

wine description:
Aromas of bright cherry and berry fruits lightly spiced with a lingering floral and herbal perfume. Wonderfully supple and silky on the palate, highlighting the ripe cherry, red berry and spice flavours, finishing with superb balance and drinkability.

winemakers comments: 
River Run is our Central Otago regional Pinot Noir made from grapes grown in our vineyards in different sub-regions of Central Otago. The deep alpine valleys and waterways of Central Otago have carved the land available for grape growing into quite distinct sub-regions. Each pocket of land has its own unique climate and soil mix producing quite different styles of Pinot Noir. River Run captures the character of each of the sub-regions where our vineyards are planted. Lowburn gives us bright, fresh sweet fruit, Gibbston savory and herbal tones, and Parkburn brings good texture and mineral length.

tasting notes |

Finla Mor Pinot Noir 2019

wine description:

Aromas of Black Doris plums, dark cherry, mocha and roast form a rich bouquet while delicate spice notes waft around the edges. The cherry and mocha flavours continue onto a palate that reveals harmonious fruit and tannin balance delivering an engaging finish.

winemakers comments:

Finla Mor is grown on selected vineyards in the Cromwell basin. The vineyards are all planted on elevated terraces in the Lowburn and Parkburn areas. Each of the vineyards feature a mix of the alluvial schist based soils giving the wine its purity and minerality. Each vineyard is hand harvested and fermented in small lots.

Tasting notes

Mata-Au Pinot Noir 2019

wine description:  

The bouquet is detailed and perfumed featuring fresh cherry fruit, wild flowers, black tea and Asian spice. The generous berry fruits are coated with layers of fine silky tannin creating an elegantly structured mid palate; while more complex floral and spice notes evolve on a powerful and sustained finish. 

winemakers comments:  
Our Mata-Au vineyards are located in the Lowburn and Parkburn areas of the Cromwell basin. The vineyards are planted on the terraces and alluvial schist based soils formed by the Mata-Au (Clutha) River (pronounced – martar-o). The unique combination of site, soil and mild continental climate produces perfumed wines with elegant texture, structure and mineral length. It is made from the best blocks in our best vineyards in the Lowburn/Parkburn sub-region. Mata-Au showcases the succulent red fruits and silky tannins that are the hallmarks of this sub-region, delivered in our elegant, textural and length driven style.

Vineyards:

• The Tiger Vineyard 33% – Lowburn, Cromwell
• The Viper Vineyard 47% – Parkburn, Cromwell
• The Mason Vineyard 20% – Parkburn, Cromwell

 tasting notes 

the Tiger Pinot Noir 2018

wine notes:

The bouquet offers earthy notes of dried herbs and red berries mixed with a sweet floral and spicy perfume. The rich spiced red fruit flavours have an interesting stalky edge. The palate builds with nice layers of silky tannin which give an unctuous mouth feel, while a lick of sour cherry keeps everything in check and some nice focus on the finish.

winemaker’s comments:

the Tiger Pinot Noir is a single vineyard wine made from grapes grown in our Tiger vineyard in the Lowburn sub-region. The vineyard is on sloping land up off the valley floor and this elevated cooler position allows the vineyard to ripen slowly, building layer upon layer of flavour nuance and soft silky tannins. The wines from this vineyard typically display spicy aromatic red berry fruits and violets. The palate is characterised by a broad structure and layers of fine integrated tannin and fruit which is more textural than structural. The Tiger is always quite shy and reticent in its youth and after 4- 5 years in bottle it really blossoms and expresses itself.

Tasting Notes | Review 

Viper Vineyard Pinot Noir 2018

wine notes: 

The bouquet has intense and complex aromatics featuring alternating bursts of blue fruits, woody herbs, sweet florals and black spice. The palate features lithe fruit and fine tannins that give great expansion, energy and freshness delivering a long flavourful finish. The finely balanced fruit and acid provides great precision and clarity to an elegant wine.

winemakers comments: 

Viper Vineyard Pinot Noir is made from grapes grown in the Grandstand Block of the Viper Vineyard in the Parkburn area on the western side of Lake Dunstan. The vineyard takes it name from the wildflower ”Vipers Bugloss” that covers the area. This vineyard sits on an undulating terrace above the valley floor. The soils are predominantly sandy loam over red clay cemented schist gravel. The terrace enjoys moderate temperatures and a long growing season. Ripening tends to be late into the season as the daytime temperatures are cooling. The cooler ripening tends to produce spicy wines with dark fruit flavours and density on the palate. The Viper is always made from the Grandstand block in the vineyard, and the wine always stands out as uniquely in the cellar as it does in the bottle.

mason vineyard pinot noir 2018

wine notes:

Crunchy red cherry fruit, spice and fresh earth notes provide an alluring perfume. On the palate the excellent fruit weight and structure seamlessly carries the vivid red fruit and complex spice flavours; while the underlying mineral tail delivers great drive and vibrancy.

winemakers comments:

The Mason Vineyard Pinot Noir is a single vineyard wine grown on the Mason vineyard in the Parkburn sub-region of the Cromwell Basin. It is a unique and captivating site on a north facing frost free slope. The wine is predominately made up of a parcel of Abel clone Pinot Noir that grows on the steep north facing “O” block. We favour the grapes that grow there because of the underlying clay and pedogenic lime layers. The vines seem to struggle more than the rest of the block, and the fruit that is produced has smaller bunches and more intense flavours as a result. It is very spicy and the fruit is elegant and sinewy on the palate. We also pick at the same time a smaller amount of clone 777 & 667 grown on either side of the Abel. These clones give the wine good tannin structure and fruit weight. 

 Tasting Notes | Review 

Maria Rose 2020

wine description:
Summer in a glass, dry Provençal style, crushed red berries over alpine flower & citrus sorbet.

winemakers comments:

Only available from the cellar door. Made from a small parcel of Chard Farm's pinot noir grapes, left on skins for only 7 hours while in the press to create this dry, slightly blushed rosé.

Pinot Gris 2019

wine description:

Floral and pear aromas with fig and date dried fruits leading to nice nutty notes in the background. The fresh pear and floral flavours highlight a lively and textured mid palate, before a dry saline tone brings back the nutty flavours for a long palate.

winemakers comments:

Our Pinot Gris is made from fruit grown on our Tiger and Sinclair vineyards in the Parkburn area of Cromwell.  All the grapes are hand harvested and fermented in small lots in stainless steel tanks helping to retain fruit purity and finesse. The wine is full, dry and textural, it displays excellent fruit structure, intensity and mineral length.

harvest:                                                   in bottle: 
Date: 15^th  & 30th April 2019                   pH: 3.50
Brix:   22.1, 22.8                                           TA: 5.1g/L
pH:   3.31, 3.35                                             Alc: 14%
TA:   5.5, 6g/L   

tasting note |

Closeburn Chardonnay 2018

wine description:
Inviting floral aromas are supported with notes of citrus and white nectarine fruits. There is generous fruit weight on the palate, with delicious ripe citrus and nectarine flavours with a hint of herby interest and complexity. Very appealing and ultimately drinkable.

winemaker’s comments:
Closeburn is our un-oaked Chardonnay. The fruit is grown throughout the Central Otago region and exhibits the regions natural elegant fruit flavours and mineral complexity. The wine is fermented in tank to retain its bright fruit. It is then left to rest on its yeast lees to gain some doughy complexity and softness. This is a refreshing full-bodied wine, unencumbered by oak and superb with food.

tasting notes | reviews

Judge & Jury Chardonnay 2019

 wine description:

A refined and elegant bouquet displaying fresh fruit notes of lemon, apple and fig mingling with white flowers and spices with background baked bread aromas. The palate is at once lively and textural, with good fruit weight and drive. The subtle apple flavours develop into strong yuzu and umami notes in the back of the palate, the finish is clean, fresh and long.

winemakers comments:

The Judge & Jury chardonnay is grown on The Tiger and Viper Vineyards in the Lowburn and Parkburn regions of the Cromwell basin. A steep slope overlooking the Tiger vineyard in Lowburn produces the same aromatically spicy/floral profiles that we find in the Pinot Noir grown there, as well as similar persistence and very long lived flavours. While the Viper Vineyard in Parkburn grows intensely lemony and weighty Chardonnay, the palate length showing the rich mineral acid and saline notes typical of this vineyard.

 We are keeping the crop load very low, and the wine is mostly fermented in tank while a small portion is made in barrel. The result is a wine that is tight, refreshingly pure and mineral driven, showcasing cool climate fruit where the oak is very much in the background. Best from 2021 on.

harvest: 22^nd March 2019                                  in bottle:
Brix   22.0                                                                  pH – 3.45
pH   3.22                                                                    TA – 6.1g/L
TA   9.0g/L                                                                Alc. – 13.1%

tasting notes | 

Gewurztraminer 2019 (sold out)

wine description:
The bouquet is a complex mix of spices, musk, Turkish Delight and rose petal. The medium weight palate is richly flavoured with a nice core of fruit and a spicy dry finish.

winemakers comments:
The fruit was hand harvested and we crushed a portion of the crop and left the juice in contact with the skins overnight before a very long and gentle press. Typically the pressing will take 9-10 hours, the slow gentle pressing gives us very clean juice that doesn’t require any further clarifying or processing before a long cool fermentation in tank.

tasting notes 

Riesling 2018

wine description:
Intense lime and white blossom aromas with a hint of spice fills the glass with a heady bouquet. On the palate the bright and vivid lime fruit is given an extra drive from a lovely spice zing; finishing fresh, dry and flavoursome.

winemakers comments:
Our Riesling is grown on the Arena Block in the Viper Vineyard at Parkburn. The Arena block is planted on a very steep north to north-west facing slope. The north facing part of the slope tends to ripen earlier and is picked for the Vipers Riesling. The north-west face is left to ripen for a longer period and is picked for this drier Chard Farm Riesling. The longer ripening period allows us to pick grapes with lower acid and riper flavours, and to make a drier style wine than the Vipers. We aim to make a fuller style that has good fruit weight and texture without losing the grapes renowned fruit focus and backbone. The 2017 Riesling will reward those with the patience to cellar the wine for 3 - 7 years.

tasting notes 

Vipers Vineyard Riesling 2018

wine description:
At first the nose shows wet stone and lime aromas, then opens up to a very complex array of musk, mint, wild herb and talc notes. In the mouth the wine is at the same time textural and light and the limey fruit dances across the palate to a beautifully balanced and lingering finish

 winemakers comments:

Our Vipers Vineyard is located on an undulating terrace in the Parkburn area of Cromwell. It takes its name from the wildflower Vipers Bugloss covering the area. Grown on the Arena C Block of the vineyard, the steep NNE facing slope produces grapes with distinctive lime flavours and a mineral edge.

This wine is made from the first pick of Riesling grapes just as they are coming into the right balance of fruit flavour, acid and sweetness. The Arena C block develops good flavours earlier than the rest of vineyard, and with higher acid. So to keep the wine balanced it is made in a medium sweet style, and is a wonderful aperitif or great with food that has a little heat.

tasting notes | 

Swiftburn Sauvignon Blanc 2020

wine description:

Pungent fruit aromas of limes and passionfruit with sweet floral and herbal notes fill the glass. Full of energy and flavour, the citrus and tree fruit cocktail bursts into the middle of the mouth and is carried on a refreshing mineral finish.

winemakers comments:
Our Central Otago grown Sauvignon Blanc is made to display classic Sauvignon herbaceousness, a touch of tropical fruit and a textural structure we only see in Central Otago Sauvignon Blanc. It is something a little different. The wine is full and textural in the mouth and has long-lasting flavour. Handpicked and whole bunch pressed this is a small batch wine. Wild yeast fermentation, extended lees contact, and a small portion fermented in barrel gives the wine the texture and length we are looking for.

Santa Sack Half Case $184 (normally $200)

1x Maria Rose ‘20

2x Pinot Gris ‘19

1x River Run Pinot Noir ‘18

1x Finla Mor Pinot Noir ‘19

1x Mata-au Pinot Noir ‘19

$184 

(normally $200)

Free Shipping on all NZ orders

the Pinotphile half case $328 (normally $357)

for lovers of Central Otago Pinot Noir, we have made up a special pack

• 1 of the Viper Pinot Noir
• 1 of the Tiger Pinot Noir
• 1 of Mason Vineyard Pinot Noir
• 1 of Mata-Au Pinot Noir
• 1 of Finla Mor Pinot Noir
• 1 of River Run Pinot Noir

Santa Sack Case $362 (normally $394)

2x Maria Rose ‘20

2x Closeburn Chardonnay ‘18

2x Pinot Gris ‘19

2x Riesling ‘18

2x Finla Mor Pinot Noir ‘19

2x Mata-au Pinot Noir ‘19

$362

 (normally $394)

Free Shipping on all NZ orders

the Pinotphile full case $656 (normally $714)

for lovers of Central Otago Pinot Noir, we have made up a special pack

• 2 of the Viper Pinot Noir
• 2 of the Tiger Pinot Noir
• 2 of Mason Vineyard Pinot Noir
• 2 of Mata-Au Pinot Noir
• 2 of Finla Mor Pinot Noir
• 2 of River Run Pinot Noir

Mata Au 2019 1.5L Magnum

wine notes:

The bouquet is detailed and perfumed featuring fresh cherry fruit, wild flowers, black tea and Asian spice. The generous berry fruits are coated with layers of fine silky tannin creating an elegantly structured mid palate; while more complex floral and spice notes evolve on a powerful and sustained finish. 

winemakers comments:

Our Mata-Au vineyards are located in the Lowburn and Parkburn areas of the Cromwell basin. The vineyards are planted on the terraces and alluvial schist based soils formed by the Mata-Au (Clutha) River (pronounced – martar-o). The unique combination of site, soil and mild continental climate produces perfumed wines with elegant texture, structure and mineral length. It is made from the best blocks in our best vineyards in the Lowburn/Parkburn sub-region. Mata-Au showcases the succulent red fruits and silky tannins that are the hallmarks of this sub-region, delivered in our elegant, textural and length driven style.    

the Tiger Pinot Noir 2017 1.5L Magnum

wine notes:
The bouquet is initially dominated by an aromatic spiciness, before red fruits and underlying savory and herbal notes develop a pleasing complexity. A very fine and textured mouthfeel, with a core of savory flavours driving through the palate, ending in a burst of sweet red berry fruit and delicate spices on a long and velvety finish.

winemaker’s comments:
the Tiger Pinot Noir is a single vineyard wine made from grapes grown in our Tiger vineyard in the Lowburn sub-region. The vineyard is on sloping land up off the valley floor and this elevated cooler position allows the vineyard to ripen slowly, building layer upon layer of flavour nuance and soft silky tannins. The wines from this vineyard typically display spicy aromatic red berry fruits and violets. The palate is characterised by a broad structure and layers of fine integrated tannin and fruit which is more textural than structural. The Tiger is always quite shy and reticent in its youth and after 4-5 years in bottle it really blossoms and expresses itself.

Viper Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016 1.5L Magnum

wine notes:
Lifted florals, brambly blackberry fruits and wet stones all compete for attention in a delightfully expressive bouquet. Excellent berry fruit intensity and drive delivers an energetic tension to the back of the palate, while the silky tannin structure builds to a flavourful and powerful finish.

winemakers comments:
The Viper Vineyard Pinot Noir is made from grapes grown in the Vipers vineyard in the Parkburn area on the western side of Lake Dunstan. The vineyard takes it name from the wildflower ”Vipers Bugloss” that covers the area. This vineyard sits on an undulating terrace above the valley floor. The soils are predominantly silt loam over schist gravel. The terrace enjoys moderate temperatures and a long growing season. Ripening tends to be late into the season as the daytime temperatures are cooling. The cooler ripening tends to produce spicy wines with dark fruit flavours and density on the palate. The Viper is always made from the Grandstand block in the vineyard and the wine always stands out as uniquely in the cellar as it does in the bottle.  

mason vineyard pinot noir 2016 1.5L Magnum

wine notes:
The nose displays an intense potpourri of exotic spice, bergamot, brambly red fruits and deeper mineral tones. With the red fruits and spice notes to the fore, the palate is driven along with lingering mineral acidity. There is a beguiling lightness of touch to the mouth feel, while at the same time a layered seamless structure provides volume and space to the powerful finish.

winemakers comments:
The Mason Vineyard Pinot Noir is a single vineyard wine grown on the Mason vineyard in the Parkburn sub-region of the Cromwell Basin. It is a unique and captivating site on a north facing frost free slope. The wine is predominately made up of a parcel of Abel clone Pinot Noir that grows on a steep north facing ridge within the block. We favour the grapes that grow there because the vines seem to struggle more than the rest of the block and the fruit that is produced has smaller bunches and more intense flavours as a result. It is very spicy and the fruit is elegant and sinewy on the palate. We also pick at the same time a smaller amount of clone 777 & 667 on the gentler slope directly below the Abel. This parcel gives the wine good tannin structure and fruit weight.