Felton Road is without doubt one of the most important wine producers in New Zealand. Located near the town of Cromwell in Central Otago, and in the Bannockburn district, it consists of 32 hectares of vines in 70 hectares of land. The remaining 38 hectares are farmed but not commercially. The farming supports the ecosystem, producing organic material for composting and winter feed for animals. One hundred and fifty tons of compost are made each year and single vineyard composts are made in order to help maintain the unique characteristics of each vineyard.
The vineyards consist of Cornish Point, Calvert, McMuir and Elms and the whole estate is biodynamic. For the last fifteen years fermentation has only been with wild yeasts and research has shown that 30% of these yeasts are unique to the site.
Rainfall here is low at around 30cm per year so irrigation is necessary. Planting is at an average of 4500 vines per hectare.
At the time of our visit they were already picking at Cornish Point, a vineyard somewhat removed from the main estate and surrounded by water on almost three sides. This makes it very different as it is warmer at night and cools southerly winds avoid high daytime temperatures. Picking has been four weeks earlier than usual but made up in part by an early spring which brought forward growth by two weeks.
Pinots are fermented 25% whole bunch with the remainder de-stemed whole berry. There is a five day soak before warming up to begin fermentation. If the grapes are too warm when brought in from the vineyard they can be put into a chiller first as they do not want fermentation starting too quickly. Following fermentation berries are left in contact for a week before the wine is put into barrel of which 33% will be new French oak. the wine will then be racked after a year. Chardonnay is put into old oak barrels, no new oak is used.
There are no additions except perhaps to replace tartaric if it has precipitated out. At bottling the maxim is low sulphur not no sulphur. This means concentrations of 30ppm for pinots and 40-50ppm for chardonnay.
2016 Vintage
The high alcohol levels achieved in Central Otago are a function of the cold nights in the area. While temperatures can reach 30 degrees Celsius during the day they can be as low as 5 degrees at night. This results in the vines becoming dormant overnight with little repiration so non of the sugars accumulated during photosynthesis in the daytime are used up. These cold nights also elongates the average time from flowering to harvest, in Burgundy this will be 100 days but in Central Otago it is more like 115 days.
In 2016 nights were, on average, warmer. This resulted in picking earlier and there are slightly lower alcohol levels of 13.5% (1% lower). The Pinots are paler, more etherial giving a lighter style.
Felton Road Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2016
Aromas of cherry, strawberry and dried herbs. Palate has lots of red fruits with just a touch of spice. This a very drinkable Bannockburn which gives lots of pleasure now.
Felton Road Calvert Pinot Noir 2016
Aromas of dark cherry, red berries and a lovely herby note. The palate has lovely red fruits and some floral character. Tannins are a little firmer. There is a good savoury, spicy finish.
Felton Road Cornish Point Pinot Noir 2016
Red/purple in appearance. Dark cherry and red fruits abound, complex with a nice balance, floral notes and a long savoury finish. Although very drinkable now it can only get better.
Felton Road Block 5 Pinot Noir 2016
Dark cherry and red berry fruits with delightful herby, floral notes. The palate is complex and elegant. A great wine in need of a few years to be at its absolute best.
Felton Road Bannockburn Chardonnay 2016
Aromas of lemon citrus, apricot and peach. palate has lovely balance, vanilla and a lovely salinity. this wine has a superb fish and is excellent drinking now.
Felton Road Block 6 Chardonnay 2016
A blockbuster of a wine! The nose is complex, tropical and stone fruits, hint of smoke and grapefruit. The palate has wonderful texture and balance. The finish is long and has peach and banana. A superb chardonnay.
Felton Road Bannockburn Riesling 2017
Lemons, lime and stone fruit. the palate is sweet on the front and dry on the back palate. Quite full textured with a lovely peachiness and slight sherbet lemon. A delightful wine and very quaffable at only 8.5% alcohol. Has 67g/l residual sugar.
A fantastic visit to Felton Road. These are wines worthy of investigation. Wine making at its best.
