The Cadenza is an ornamental musical passage usually performed by a soloist at the end of an aria or piece of music. Often improvised but always elaborate, this final flourish is meant to impress!
2023 Vintage
“An elegant late-harvest style with aromas of white spice and candy floss and a refreshing palate with guava and tropical fruits providing a harmonious and indulgent experience.” Olly Masters (Winemaker)
Vintage Notes
The warm temperatures at the start of the season (without the usual buffeting spring winds), resulted in rapid growth on the vineyard, especially aided by moist ground from a wet winter. The warmth continued right through to the first signs of flowering at the end of November. A cool front in early December slowed flowering but early indications suggested a good fruit set with bunch size looking promising and our canopy was probably in the best condition it has ever been.
January was hot and dry with a few consecutive days over 30+C degrees. As we moved into February, conditions stayed warm with a couple of rain events helping to keep up soil moisture. Bird nets started to go on mid-month but were delayed a few times due to wind events – the only time we had wind issues during the season.
Warm and dry conditions continued into March, and we started hand-harvesting on the 28th March with Pinot Noir for Rosé and continued for the next month across varieties and blocks. This was a dream season in terms of fruit quality and vine health with yields also above the long-term average. Berry size was also even across all varieties aiding flavour consistency and varietal expression, and there was good colour development and tannin ripeness in the Pinot Noir. This season will be remembered as one of the best. Growing Degree Days (GDDs) were 1152.
Food Match
This late-harvest style of Gewürztraminer is a perfect match to fruit-based desserts especially those with apricots, peaches, pears or lychees. It’s also a great match with strongly-flavoured soft cheeses. For savoury matches, try foie gras or any mild curries featuring ginger, cinnamon or lychee flavours.
Details
| Region | Central Otago, New Zealand | Vineyard | Estate-grown, single vineyard |
| Sub-region | Bendigo | Variety/ Clones | 456 |
| Planting | 2005, Altitude: 288 – 313m | Harvested | 8 June 2023 |
| Harvest Analysis | Brix: 29.4 / pH: 3.44 / TA: 5.2 g/l | Bottled | 15 August 2023 (Stelvin closure) |
| Wine Analysis | Alc: 10.0% / pH: 3.53 / TA: 5.8 g/l | Cellaring | 1 – 5+ years |
| Residual Sugar | 121 g/l | Style | Medium-sweet |
Winemaking
The late harvest fruit (<5% botrytis) was hand-picked into bins. The fruit was was gently crushed and left to soak for 2 days in bins to maximise flavour and sugar extraction from the desiccated fruit. The juice was settled clear and inoculated and then 100% cool tank fermented (~15-17⁰C) with commercial yeast in order to retain varietal freshness. The ferment was then halted by chilling at what was determined to be the optimum residual sugar level (131g/l).
