Description

Skin Contact Blend

Blending varieties is like blending primary colours on a page. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Beautiful Strangers is an aromatic, orange blend of four varieties from two organic Te Matau a Māui vineyards.

These varieties are fermented with skins included, coming together from different sides of the flavour spectrum to make a wild and explosive wine.

Floral, red berry, orange zest and musk. The skin contact has provided light herbal, savoury notes to the nose. Juicy, yet dry at the start, this wine flows into stone fruit and tangy grapefruit with a fresh, saline finish and mild tannin.

Only 1860 bottles produced.

Winemaking

47% – Pinot Gris

27% – Chardonnay

26% – Sauvignon

In late February handpicked 809 (Muscat clone) Chardonnay from Mangatahi was destemmed and sent to a small open fermenter to lay on skins with gentle hand plunging, once a day. After 18 days it was pressed to tank to go through malolactic fermentation.

Almost 2 weeks later the Mangatahi Pinot Gris was 100% destemmed, fermented on skins for 17 days before pressing.

Then in mid-March a small amount of Raukawa Sauvignon was destemmed to another fermenter for 10 days of soft extraction before pressing to tank.

Once the Sauvignon had settled in tank for a week, all 3 varieties were blended and sent to large old barrels, where it matured for 3 months at cool temperatures, before being racked to tank for bottling.

No fining or filtration.

Minimal sulphur was added two weeks before bottling.

11.5% Alc