“Dress Circle” – Pinot Gris 2023

The Dress Circle is the premium seating in the theatre and matches the location of our Pinot Gris. Situated on our middle terrace overlooking the spectacular vista of lake and mountains, it is indeed the ‘dress circle’ of the vineyard.

2023 Vintage

“Aromas of dried fruit and toasted hazelnuts, this dry style has a luscious palate of nectarine, pear, orange zest and cinnamon with a hint of ginger adding complexity to a long finish.” Olly Masters (Winemaker)

Vintage Notes

Overall, it was an excellent season in Central Otago with warm temperatures and very little rainfall. Early in the season, cool and cloudy weather impacted flowering which had us concerned about the subsequent fruit set but it wasn’t an issue. The warm and settled conditions throughout the season enabled excellent canopy growth. There was much less impact from the usual spring winds and we had some well-timed rain at the end of the season. All these factors resulted in above average berry weights with bunch numbers also high from the previous season’s ideal conditions. This resulted in a record total crop, and whilst positive, the conditions did require an extra level of vineyard management with multiple row passes to ensure quality was maintained. This Pinot Gris was hand-picked at an average yield of 7.75 T/ha and Growing Degree Days (GDDs) were 1167.

Food Match

This is an ‘anytime’ white wine that can be enjoyed alone or matched with a wide variety of food including many Asian style stir-fries and dishes that are a little spicy. It’s also particularly good with shellfish, salmon, chicken, pork, and creamy-sauce pasta.

Details

Winemaking

As typical, the Pinot Gris had a good crop and was one of the last varieties harvested. This year the fruit was lightly crushed then gently whole bunch pressed to retain freshness. The free run portion of the juice was kept separate and racked clear to stainless steel tanks,
where it was inoculated and cool-fermented (14-15°C) to retain varietal character. The pressings portion had some of the free run juice added back and was fermented at warmer temperatures (20°C) in older French oak hogshead barrels (38% of blend) with indigenous yeast to add more yeast complexity and build mid-palate texture into the wine.