Felton Road - Block 5 - Pinot Noir 2020
Felton Road is located in Bannockburn, a sub-region of the Central Otago in New-Zealand’s South Island. It is one of New Zealand's best known and most highly respected producers. Considerable research by Stewart Elms (hence the Elm tree logo) in 1991 identified the north facing slopes at the end of Felton Road, Bannockburn, as being one of the warmest and most ideal sites in Central Otago for the growing and production of premium wine. The estate comprises four vineyards on warm, north-facing slopes in Bannockburn: the original Elms vineyard (14.7 hectares), the Macmuir vineyard (5.1 hectares), the Calvert vineyard (4.6 hectares) and Cornish Point (7.6 hectares). The vineyards are managed by viticulturist Gareth King, and his team of dedicated staff. Since 2002 the vineyards have been managed organically and biodynamically; organic compost is made utilising the winery waste, and organic cow manure and straw. In 2010, all four vineyards were awarded full Demeter certification. Felton Road harvests grapes by hand, and follows the minimal intervention ethos in the winery: with gravity-fed systems, wild yeasts and no fining or filtration. Oak is a subtle companion.
The Pinot Noir 2020 comes from Block 5 of The Elms vineyard, planted in 1993 on a gentle north-facing slope. 20% of the fruit was retained as whole clusters with the remainder carefully destemmed directly to the fermenters by gravity without harsh pumping. A long pre-fermentation soaks of 8 to 10 days was carried out prior to fermentation with indigenous yeasts and manual punching down up to two times per day. The total time on the skins lasted 23 days. The juice was then pressed off and the barrels filled immediately by gravity to the underground barrel cellars. The wine spent 17 months in barrel (30% new French oak) with two racking before bottling. The 2020 vintage saw some cool and extended ripening conditions leading to ripe and concentrated flavours with good vibrancy and acidity.
Grape variety: 100% Pinot Noir