Felton Road Calvert Pinot Noir 2023

Central Otago has become a hotspot for premium Pinot Noir, second only to Burgundy, and Felton Road’s wines are a large part of the reason. While committing to biodynamic practices and low-intervention winemaking, they make pure single-vineyard expressions of Pinot Noir, Riesling and Chardonnay.

Stewart Elms, was the man who in 1991 identified the north-facing slopes at the end of Felton Road as being an ideal spot for premium viticulture. It was Stewart that first planted vines on the property, but Nigel Greening who later bought the original vineyard and combined it with three others close by in Bannockburn.

Felton Road now exports to approximately 40 countries and are frequently ranked high up in the Drinks International magazine’s ""World’s Most Admired Wine Brands"" list, and their wines have become world-renowned and highly sought-after by sommeliers, collectors and critics alike.

Fruit came from the Calvert vineyard just 1km from The Elms vineyard and the winery. Harvest started on March 23rd with grapes being de-stemmed directly into open-top fermenters without pumping, with 25% retained as whole bunches. Long pre-fermentation soaks of 10 days prior to fermentation with indigenous yeasts of 10 days. Punched down two times a day with a total time on skins of 21-14 days. Pressed off to French oak barrels (25% new), where it spent 16 months, with two rackings, and no fining or filtration before bottling in late August 2024.