Millton Vineyards - Clos de Ste. Anne Syrah The Crucible 2021

Millton Vineyards - Clos de Ste. Anne Syrah The Crucible 2021

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Description

Black as thunder and sweet as a teenage kiss. Clos de Ste. Anne is a single vineyard situated on steep northeast facing slopes in the foothills of Poverty Bay. The Syrah is grown in a little bowl high up in the slopes of this estate. Protected on all sides by the topography, it faces directly into the north west and is best described as The Crucible.

Notes from the Vigneron: Hand harvested grapes were chilled prior to de-stemming and then gently placed in small 1000 litre wooden “cuvées” for the fermentation. Allowed to warm the natural fermentation then started on its’ own accord and each 8 hours the skins were pushed into the seething mass of fermenting juices.

Purple-hued and a complex luminosity, the white pepper enhances the beautiful ripeness with violets, writers ink and dark chocolate adding to the aroma. The palate is forward, with rich full flavours followed by a silken acidity with elegant tannin. The texture is sensual. As black as thunder and sweet as a teenage kiss. The acidity is silken and flows on a current of tantalising dark fruit. Bottled on the property, using the finest natural cork. Store lying down. This wine also enjoys a time to rest in a decanter before serving.

Unfined. • BioGro Certified Organic • Demeter Certified Biodynamic • Grown and Bottled on the Property • Dry Farmed Total Acidity: 7.1g/l pH: 3.76 Alcohol: 13% Vol. Residual Sugar: 0.0 g/l Harvested: 14th April 2019 Bottled: 6th August 2021

 

2021 vintage:

A serious Syrah from the most closely guarded of Millton's vineyards. This wine is nicknamed 'The Crucible' because it is from a steep but very sheltered spot in Poverty Bay, surrounded by ridges with a north-west, sun-facing aspect. The result is a brighter Northern Rhone style in which real fruit depth is expressed in a sinewy, focused and savoury palate. Up with the best Kiwi Syrah, the Millton Clos de Ste Anne is a very special food red to decant now or cellar.

 

--------THE PRODUCER--------

Millton Vineyards

James & Annie Millton established Millton Vineyards & Winery in 1984. Their four individual dry farmed vineyards are situated on the East Coast of New Zealand in the wine appellation of Gisborne. A small artisan winegrower, Millton was the first producer in New Zealand to gain BioGro certification for organic wine production in 1989. Having practiced traditional methods of cultivation and production centred on biodynamic principles since inception, Millton were the first winegrowers in the Southern Hemisphere to gain the biodynamic certification Demeter in 2009.

--------THE REGION--------

Gisborne

Gisborne rewards those who take a trip east with a diverse range of wines, from full-flavoured and fruit-driven, to critically acclaimed biodynamic classics.

Gisborne is home to a mix of large producers, boutique wineries, and entrepreneurial growers, who are continuously exploring new varieties and vineyard sites. A dynamic food and wine scene completes the picture.
Rich in history, Gisborne claims Captain Cook’s first landfall, as well as being the first place in New Zealand to see the sunrise.
Chardonnay is the dominant variety and enjoys great success, though a very wide range of red and white varieties are successfully established and new varieties are always trialled. Hillside land is being explored and matched with new varieties and clones; Gisborne’s renaissance is fully underway.

The mix of high sunshine, verdant landscapes, fascinating history and the exciting range of wine styles makes Gisborne a beguiling wine destination.

Gisborne wine subregions

Regional Maps 2020, Gisborne

Regularly recording some of the highest sunshine and temperatures in New Zealand sees Gisborne frequently the country’s first to be harvested. 

A. Ormond

North of the city, where the river valley narrows into the Raukumara Ranges the site of Gisborne’s original plantings (and some of today’s best vineyards and wines) produces numerous single-vineyard wines. This area is also home to ‘The Golden Slope’, a 10km gently-sloping, free-draining escarpment with limestone-influenced topsoil, which produces some of Gisborne’s best Chardonnay.

B. Patutahi

Around one-third of region’s vines are found on this warmer inland site, to the west of the city. With low rainfall and well-draining, sloping clay and silt soils this area produces excellent, rich Gewürztraminer, along with other varieties, with good texture and body.

C. Manutuke

In this coastal area, south of the city, vines were first established in the late 1890s. Chardonnay is the main variety grown in well-drained and sandy soils, with silty and heavier Kaiti clay soils found in sites to the hillier west. Nearer to the river, soil and climatic conditions can produce delightful botrytised wines and finely-textured aromatics.