Old Coach Road Nelson Gewürztraminer 2015

Wine Analysis

Vineyard: Seifried Brightwater and Redwood Valley vineyards
Sugar at Harvest: 21.5°Brix
Date of Harvest: Mid March 2015
pH of Wine: 3.57
T.A of Wine: 5.7g/L
Residual Sugar of Wine: 8g/L
Suitable for Vegetarians: Yes

The Vineyards

The 2015 Old Coach Road Gewürztraminer is a blend of our two vineyard sites growing Gewürztraminer. Our Brightwater vineyard is situated 15 km from the coast and is sheltered from the south by the Richmond ranges. The “soil” is a combination of rocks and boulders, which is very hard on the farm equipment, but vital for holding the warmth of Nelson’s sun and for ripening grapes.
The unirrigated Redwood Valley vineyard is situated on a gently sloping, north facing clay site; the vines range in age from 10 to 30 years. Vertical shoot positioning helps to expose the berries to sunlight, thus getting maximum intensity and optimal ripeness.

Winemakers Note

Gewürztraminer is an early ripening variety with an aromatic, fragrant bouquet. It is naturally a low yielding vine which can produce wonderful concentration and flavour.
After harvest the grapes were de-stemmed and left for a period of skin contact before pressing. The clear juice was inoculated with a pure yeast strain and then a cool, temperature-controlled fermentation began. The fermentation was stopped prematurely to allow slight residual sweetness in the wine. Post ferment the wine spent a brief period on light lees, before being stabilised and bottled in July 2015.

Tasting Note

The 2015 Old Coach Road Gewürztraminer has varietal characters stamped all over it, although it has an element of complexity to it. This is attributable to a small portion of this blend spending two months fermenting and aging in old neutral oak barrels. This time on lees in oak lead to a smooth and textual element on the palate which sits alongside characteristic floral and spicy notes.