Picnic Riesling - 2016

About the wine

Featuring the Proprietor’s Grandfather, Sydney Neill – Wine Merchant, on the label, Picnic Riesling is our perennial favourite and a wonderful introduction to the pleasure of Central Otago Riesling. We think it is just as much a dinner wine as a luncheon – equally enjoyable at home outdoors, as at the Captain’s Table. The fruit is organically grown on two small blocks at the home vineyard (HQ), The Red Bank Farm & Vineyard in Earnscleugh, Alexandra.

Tasting Notes

Featuring the Proprietor’s Grandfather, Sydney Neill – Wine Merchant, on the label, Picnic Riesling is our perennial favourite and a wonderful introduction to the pleasure of Central Otago Riesling. We think it is just as much a dinner wine as a luncheon – equally enjoyable at home outdoors, as at the Captain’s Table. The fruit is organically grown on two small blocks at the home vineyard (HQ), The Red Bank Farm & Vineyard in Earnscleugh, Alexandra.

Vintage Comment:

The Two Paddocks 2016 harvest began on the 5th of April 2016. Overall very clean and balanced fruit was achieved from ripening under extended settled warm autumn conditions, albeit we were slightly low on crop loads due to the cool windy Spring in the earlier part of Summer. After a cool start to the growing season with 18 frost events in 6 weeks, the heat really only came after flowering in late December. Rainfall for the entire 8-month growing season of Sept-Apr was low with only 160mm received in total. February was the start of the 'big finish', which saw an average temp of 19C for the month. This flowed into March, April and May which were all warm, settled and dry. Vintage was extraordinarily compact with even the typically later Gibbston vineyard being ready to pick by the third week in April meaning that all harvesting was over by the 26th of April.

Vineyard Management:

Soil: Gravelly loamy silt. Vines grown on their own roots – cane cuttings from Felton Road. Single cane, one bunch per shoot, 5500 vines per hectare. Shoot and lateral thinned, and leaf plucked. Hand harvested on the 14^th of April 2016.

Winemaker’s Notes:

Lime, loquat, spicy wild flower aromatics followed by a warm, citrus driven flavour profile showing great length, texture and drive.

pH: 3.02-- TA: 6.6 g/L-- Alc: 13 %--R/S: Off dry, 6-10g/L

Proprietor: Sam Neill

Viticulturist: Mike Wing

Winemaker: Dean Shaw

Bottled: 19 September 2016

Total Production: 420 cases

Cellaring: 2016 – 2021