Pinot Gris 2019
Regular price
$51.00
Sale
One of the highest rated dry Pinot Gris - a gem that stands out from the crowd! This dry, noble wine hails from one of New Zealand's Pinot Gris pioneers! It entices with opulent aromas of apricots and rock melon, then dazzles the palate with its vivacious, mouth-filling presence, courtesy of perfectly ripe fruit. The wine boasts incredible texture and concludes with a lengthy, fresh, honeyed finish that leaves a lasting impression.
Vintage 2019+
An ideal growing season, combined with our low-yield approach, yielded flawless, healthy, and flavourful berries with a subtle perfume. These gems ripened to perfection, emanating from 23-year-old vines.
Hans' Comments+
Meticulously hand-picked and destemmed grapes allowed for an extended skin maceration to extract the impressive flavours and pinkish colour. Using no cultured yeast (or any other adjustments and enhancements) for a true terroir wine with a sense of place, the must progressed naturally to a wild, cool fermentation without any residual sugar left. 20% of the wine matured in French oak puncheons for 18-months with its fine lees regular stirred assisting to the remarkable silkiness, complexity and depth. This wine has not been exposed to cold stabilization and fining, with only a light filtration to retain the elusive aromas. Natural sediments may show and are testimony of this high quality, dry Pinot Gris. Perfect in taste, naturally.
Tasting Notes+
From one of New Zealand’s pioneers of Pinot Gris. Opulent aromas of apricots and peaches jump out of the glass. Vivaciously mouth-filling with invigorating acidity, driving through the forefront, wonderfully sweet fruit from physiological ripeness. The lees contact adds to the silky texture and complexity. A beautiful long and uplifting finish for a dry Pinot Gris with no residual sugar.
Technical Data+
| Variety | 100% Pinot Gris |
| Rootstock | RG, 101-14 |
| Vine Planted | 1996 |
| Soil | Shallow (<45 cm) stony soil, excessively drained, developed from stony alluvium. Mixed even within the rows (sandy, gravelly, patchy clay-sand layers) |
| Planting Density | 5,500 vines/ha |
| Yield | 3t/ha |
| Alcohol | 13% |
| Residual Sugar | <1 g/l |
| Ageing Potential | 5 years |
| Bottles Produced | 2,058 |
Food Matching Suggestions+
All our dry but full-bodied wines are famous for its food friendliness and Pinot Gris is especially versatile. Try with any pan fried white fish or a Sashimi.
Industry Reviews+
Wine Align (John Szabo) - 96 points (2019)
"An amber style pinot gris, pinkish-bronze in colour, with an intriguing mix of oxidative aromatics, dried herbs and flowers, dried and bruised red berry fruit, also lightly vegetal, stewed celery and celery salt - another idiosyncratic wine from Herzog. The palate is thick and creamy but not flabby, with some textural relief and balancing bitterness to focus the long finish. All in all, a remarkably concentrated and complex, and also very clean and well-made skin-fermented white, with potential to improve with age. Indeed, I'd love to see this after 2024, or fully aged into the early '30s for something even more unique."
James Suckling - 95 points
March 2023. "This is an interesting wine with a bronze color and citrus undertone. Character of persimmons and spiced pears with some iron. Flavorful finish. Fresh, too. Sort of an orange wine vibe to it! Awesome. Drink or hold."