2021 Kōparepare Marlborough Pinot Gris
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TASTING NOTE
For every bottle of Kōparepare sold, we donate to LegaSea, a non-profit organisation dedicated to restoring the abundance, biodiversity and health of New Zealand’s marine environment.
Colour / Appearance: Pale lemon with bright clarity.
Aroma / Bouquet: Lifted white peach, pear and almond meal notes, with a hint of lemon citrus.
Palate: Classic pear and citrus flavours, with a suggestion of almond and cashew nut. The palate is softly textured with a generous mouthfeel and a pleasant, long finish.
Food Match: Pair with sustainably sourced seafood.
Cellaring: This wine is ready to be enjoyed now, or within three years of the vintage date.
Serve: Lightly chilled.
WINE ANALYSIS
Alcohol: 14%
Residual Sugar: 4.8g/L
Acidity: 5.0g/L
pH: 3.33
VITICULTURE
Climate: 2021 will be remembered as a season of two halves. The early part of the growing season was marked by two severe frost burn events which affected much of the region to varying degrees. This was followed by variable cool and wet weather through flowering, resulting in fewer berries setting per bunch, further reducing crops after the frost damage. Post-Christmas however, we could not have asked for a better season. The weather remained warm, but not hot, and we had beautiful diurnal shift leading into harvest, retaining freshness and energy in the fruit and providing the perfect conditions for flavour development. The 2021 season provided us with clean, flavourful Pinot Gris grapes which were a joy to make wine from.
Grape Growing: The fruit for this wine was sourced from our winery home block vineyard at Pauls Rd (53%) and our Tussocks Vineyard in the Awatere (47%). The vines are pruned to two canes on a vertical shoot positioned trellis. Shoot thinning, leaf plucking, and trimming are used to achieve balanced vines, a healthy canopy and clean fruit. Minimal crop thinning was required in 2021 due to naturally low crops.
WINEMAKING
Harvest Dates: 15th & 22nd of March, 2021
Winemaking: A portion of the fruit used to make this wine was hand harvested and whole bunch pressed, with the balance machine harvested. After settling, we fermented the clean juice at 14-16°deg using an aromatic yeast strain. Once fermented we let the wine sit on light yeast lees for 2-3 months, before filtration and finally bottling on the 30th August 2021.
ACCOLADES
- "Bright and pristine with green rockmelon, ripe pear, floral and subtle spice aromas, it's succulent and beautifully rounded on the palate displaying juicy fruit flavours together with refreshing acidity, making it immediately appealing." 5 Stars - Sam Kim, Wine Orbit
- "Delicious young, the 2021 vintage (4*), made by Whitehaven, is sold to help fund the fisheries restoration work of LegaSea. Bright, light lemon/green, it is full-bodied and vibrantly fruity, with fresh, lively pear, lychee and spice flavours, balanced acidity, and a dry (3.8 grams/litre of residual sugar), very harmonious finish. Good value." 4 Stars - Michael Cooper, NZ
- "The nose is full, with an amalgam of spice overlying cinnamon-poached-pear, quince and magnolia. Full-bodied, dryish to taste, aromas of poached pear, quince and magnolia enriched by underlying alcohol power, carrying ginger and cinnamon spices. The mouthfeel is full and creamy; fine-textured phenolics add silky dusting. This Pinot Gris is robust with generous fruit and spice on a textural palate." 85/100 points (4 Stars), Candice Chow (Raymond Chan Wine Reviews)
