150 Church Road,
Taradale,
Hawke's Bay
New Zealand
Ph: +64 6 844 2053
Fax: +64 6 844 3378
info@churchroad.co.nz
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©2006
Founded in 1897, the Church Road Winery is committed to crafting premium, complex wines that marry the ripe, distinctive fruit characteristics of Hawkes Bay grapes with subtle nuances obtained from the use of traditional winemaking techniques.
This is the first Pinot Gris produced at Church Road, and we are encouraged by the textural and aromatic quality we have been able to achieve in Hawke’s Bay. Further vintages of this variety under the Church Road label will be released as we continue to explore ways of growing and crafting this wine.
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Release date: February 2006
Variety: 100% Pinot Gris
Region: Korokipo, Hawke's Bay
Colour: Pale straw.
Aromas: Fragrant pear, citrus blossom, spice and subtle savoury characters.
Palate: This dry style Pinot Gris exhibits good palate weight which, combined with the naturally low acidity of this variety, gives an almost oily texture.
An excellent aperitif style, the wine also works well with seafood and other lighter style dishes.
Careful cellaring for up to 3 years will allow the aromatics to unfold further, while the palate will tend towards an increasingly creamy texture.
Low crops and a warm summer insured that good flavour ripeness and concentration was achieved. Our warm Korokipo vineyard comprises of light silt and sand soils laid down by the Ngaruroro river, while some erosion of the nearby hillsides increases the clay content closer to the road. This soil and mesoclimate has a history of producing vibrant, full flavoured Chardonnay, and we are seeing similar results in the Pinot Gris.
Brix at harvest: 23º
Winemaker: Chris Scott
The wine was drained off the skins as quickly as possible to reduce extraction of the skins, and the juice was allowed to oxidise to some extent, in order to soften the texture of the resultant wine. After brief settling, cloudy juice was filled to old French oak barrels for fermentation.
The wine was matured for several months in oak, on yeast lees, in order to further increase the palate weight and texture of the wine.
Alcohol: 14% by volume
pH: 3.42
Total acidity: 5.64g/L as tartaric
Residual sugar: 3.4g/L
2005*
* currently available vintage(s)
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