Derwent Estate Sparkling 2022

Fruit sourced from a 30-year-old vineyard sitting at 200m of elevation; the fruit here is often picked at the same time as the rest of the valley is picking grapes destined for table wine. This extra hang time on the vine allows the fruit to develop with good intensity of flavour and high acid levels at the desired ripeness.

50% Pinot noir and 50% Chardonnay; the fruit was hand-picked when it exhibited fresh strawberry and citrus characters respectively. Whole bunch pressed in our inert gas press; the juice was pressed to tank for settling with minimal sulphur. The pinot underwent micro oxidation to remove some colour, and both varieties were transferred to old oak barrels for fermentation using cultured yeasts. Our goal is to produce a complex wine with minimal time on lees. The base wine was lees stirred fortnightly from post ferment to bottling, picking up yeast autolysis characters early on. From 2014, with the winery now onsite, we were able to hold back some base wine; 15% was added to this vintage, with some held back for the following year in a solera like system. This base wine completed 100% malolactic fermentation prior to tirage in the Spring with no finning’s added. Aged for 3 years on lees, the finished wine was disgorged and allowed several months on cork prior to release.

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