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Pinot Noir 2010

84 Points "Bright, pure and focused flavours of cherry, plum and raspberry with a slight herb and floral influence. Sweet and slightly succulent fruit flavours are balanced by fruity acidity and fine tannins to give a delicately austere finish.”  Bob Campbell MW

Description

Rich black cherry and spiced fruit open a multilayered nose, followed quickly by briary complexity. The palate presents flavours of delicious spiced plum, with subtle vanilla and nutmeg notes. The finish is supple, with lovely lingering intensity. The flavours should develop and integrate with careful cellaring for up to five years.

Viticulture

The fruit for this Pinot Noir comes from four blocks in our vineyard, each pruned with a different technique to maximise the quality of the fruit in each area. The vines are minimally irrigated and hand leaf plucked after veraison to regulate sun exposure and air flow. This allows the fruit to reach maximum ripeness of phenolics and assists with the production of the anthocyanins that gives the wine its colour.

The 2010 vintage was fine and long. The fruit ripened slowly in a clean, dry and breezy weather pattern which was very forgiving. The Pinot Noir hung later than usual, developing lovely tannins and intense flavours. The bunches were quite small and clean with good easterly sun exposure. We harvested late in April.

Vinification

The fruit was destemmed into small vats, with the juice and skins held at 10°C for at least 72 hours before fermentation. They were then inoculated with yeast and allowed to ferment, with the temperature encouraged to exceed 30°C to extract tannin and colour from the skins. We plunged the cap four times a day. Once fermentation was complete, the wine was allowed to stay on skins for a further four days, at which point it was gently pressed and settled in tank. The wine was transferred to small French oak barrels, of which some 20% were new. It was then left in oak for 10 months and allowed to undergo malolactic fermentation. Once complete, the wine was minimally filtered and bottled.

Brix at harvest: 23.7°
Total Acidity: 5.3 g/l
PH: 3.62
Alcohol: 13.5%

> Bouldevines Marlborough Pinot Noir 2010 Tasting Note (PDF)

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