Kim Crawford, Pinot Noir 2017

Description

Pinot Noir blended from different regions of the South Island to incorporate the best characteristics into one wine. A wide variety of clones and rootstock were used, along with a mixture of soils and microclimates to ensure a balance of flavour profiles.

Producer Note

Kim Crawford Wines was established in late 1996, when Kim launched a range made from fruit grown in the South Island. Kim sold the company to Constellation in 2005 and has since handed the winemaking reins over to the Constellation winemaking team. Despite Kim no longer being involved with these wines, the current winemakers continue the classic Kim Crawford philosophy and
style. Control over grape supply has always been essential for Kim Crawford Wines and they now have the largest vineyard resource in Marlborough of any wine company, across the greatest
breadth of sub-regions, ensuring consistent quality and style. For that consistency, and success over the past 20 years, Wine Enthusiast magazine USA recognised Kim Crawford as their “New World Winery of the Year 2016”

Vintage

Extreme weather events brought challenges to the 2017 vintage. Central Otago saw late frosts in spring and an unseasonal 30 centimetres of snow in April. Marlborough’s harvest began around
10 days late after a cool summer and then saw heavy rain during harvest. However, a cool spring left the bunches more open and less vulnerable to disease and with careful management and the low yields, the Pinot Noir was picked with intense concentration.

Vineyard

The grapes for this wine are sourced from some excellent coolclimate vineyards in the Marlborough (65%) and Central Otago (35%) regions of New Zealand’s South Island. A wide variety of clones and rootstock were used, along with a mixture of soils and microclimates to ensure a balance of flavour profiles and exceptional quality. In 2017 for the first time, the team included grapes from top Central Otago vineyards normally reserved for single vineyard wines, adding to the fruit intensity.The grapes were all harvested in the cool of night or early morning and promptly delivered to the winery to optimise fruit quality.

Winemaking

The grapes were destemmed and cold soaked for five days, and left on the skins for a total of 14 days. The wine was then inoculated with a mixture of pure and wild yeast strains to gain maximum flavour and complexity and fermented in open top fermenters. After fermentation, the wine was pressed off the skins into tank and part of the blend went into French oak barrels for nine months (10% new, 40% 1 to 3 years old)

Tasting Note

This wine has lifted red berry fruits on the nose, mixed with dark cherry notes, savoury undertones and spicy oak. The palate displays ripe blackberry and cherry, filled out with subtle sweet spice from the oak ageing.

Grape

Pinot Noir 100%