Felton Road Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2018

Felton Road Bannockburn Pinot Noir, biodynamic, whole bunch fermented, elegant and complex Pinot Noir. The attention to detail at the Felton Road winery is exceptional and when producing the Pinot Noir, they look very much to the Burgundian model and style. Using wild yeasts for the fermentation is an important part of the natural wine making philosophy, with wines being rested outdoors in small fermenters for extended maceration with up to four punch downs per day, before being run by gravity to barrel. All the barrels are Burgundian coopered, 3-year air dried (typically 30% new oak each vintage) and selected for their slow extraction and subtlety of flavour. Complex, elegant, with depth, minerals and wonderful fruit flavours, these are very fine bottles of Pinot Noir.

Based in Bannockburn, Central Otago, the most southerly wine-growing region in the world, Felton Road winery can be found in several small micro-climates surrounded by perpetually snow capped mountains. These micro-climates consistently combine hot days, cool nights and long dry autumns: perfect for the creation of fine Pinot Noir and Riesling. Felton Road work biodynamically, to promote a healthy, biodiverse vineyard with exceptional fruit quality. Ferments are spontaneous from the wild or indigenous yeasts that are in the vineyards and winery. Inert gas is shunned and oak is treated as "a subtle companion, not a loud guest" so as to allow the wine to speak of its origin.