Unkel - 'Rio' Pinot Gris - 2023

Unkel - 'Rio' Pinot Gris - 2023

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Description

Rio | Pinot Gris | 13.5% | Organic | Nelson | 2023

Rio is a tale of two equally charismatic parties that sit alongside one another in a cohesive blend of pinot gris that pulls all the right strings.

Tasting Notes: 2023 brings a new look to 'Rio'. Light peach/pink in colour, 'Rio' is a lovely, textural white with pretty phenolics that wrap around delicate flavours of peach, pear and apricot. This wine has a soft mouthfeel with a lovely acidity giving it great length.

Winemaking: A blend of 1/3 direct press, 1/3 2-day skin fermented and 1/3 3-day skin fermented Pinot Gris aged in old puncheons.

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

UNKEL

Like many great New Zealand producers, Rob Burley found his place in the wine world after working for a number of great like-minded producers abroad. Though Rob worked vintages in NZ, France and America, it wasn’t until he moved to Australia and started to work for Bill Downie and Patrick Sullivan that the concept for Unkel Wines was born.

After doing his time working for Bill and Patrick in Australia, Rob and his wife Kate decided to move back to New Zealand and start a family. Eventually they settled on Nelson where they took over an old organic estate and winery just prior to the 2019 vintage. 
For Unkel, their biggest goal was always to grow and make their own wines from their own fruit, so for 2020 their dream is now their reality, and the 2020 wines are everything they have set out to do.
All the wines are organically farmed, dry-farmed (unirrigated), hand harvested, wild fermented, unfiltered and unfined. Minimal sulphites of 15-25mg/L are added at bottling to ensure stability (all suitable for glass pour). All of the 2020 release is in clear glass, bottled under Nomacorc (TCA free) and are hand-dipped in wax (which we promise is not flaky this year!)

Who is Unkel?

Unkel (variation of the spelling of Uncle), is about working with Mother Nature in the Vineyard to produce the highest quality fruit that we can obtain from her. Once in the winery, rather than being that hands-on, overbearing parent or father figure, you can think of us more like that cruisy, fun, slightly wild Uncle in your life.

 WHO IS THE UNKEL?

As the ‘Unkel’, we always allow the wine to do the talking, leading its own life through fermentation and ageing in the winery providing what we believe is the most honest expression of the fruit that we started with.

Ultimately, we just want to make wines to be enjoyed with friends and family. Wines to be shared with a smile...anywhere, anytime and on any occasion.

 

--------THE GRAPE--------

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir produces some of the world's most expensive, most lauded, rarest and delicious wines. Equally it is one of the most difficult grapes to grow successfully and as a result it is quite hard to make a balanced Pinot Noir. It is historically from Burgundy, most specifically in the Cote de Nuits, so much so that people will refer to Pinot Noir as a 'Burgundy'.


 

--------THE REGION--------

Nelson

Located in the north-west of South Island, this warm enclave is hemmed in by Mount Arthur and the Southern Alps. Riesling has found its feet among the free-draining, stony silt soils while Gewürztraminer also shows potential.