It's not often that a wine truly surprises us but this is one of them!
Harrison Eaton's adventurous winemaking is on full display here with this wine, an extended (and we mean extended) skin-contact blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier sourced from the BioGro-certified Aunstfield Vineyard.
After seperate hand harvesting and gentle hand-plunge, the wine spent 155 days on skins before basket press (95% free run) and placed into seasoned French oak demi-muid. The barrel was the topped occasionally to encourage oxidative character, with a further 16 months élevage, before bottling unfined and unfiltered.
On the nose - this is vibrant and quite assertive! True to its name, this is all florals, with supporting notes of gooseberry and tropical fruits. The palate follows with mouth-filling honeysuckle and jasmine, followed by yellow raspberry and pithy grapefruit. The extended skin-contact provides a generous texture, tannins and acidity resolving well into a long and moreish finish.
A big achievement in New Zealand lo-fi winemaking, we can't wait to see what Harrison does next. With only 254 bottles produced, believe us when we say - get in while you can!