Sparkling Rosé, Bird in Hand

Vinification details

Crushed and destemmed straight to press with minimal time on skins ensured the extraction of only the lightest of colour. Individual batches from each vineyard were kept separate right up until blending, to guarantee the winemakers could select the best fruit based on flavour, complexity and cohesiveness.

Vintage conditions

The 2021 growing season saw a return to weather conditions that were more in line with the long-term rainfall and temperature averages. Solid winter rainfall followed was by ideal springtime conditions bringing intermittent rainfall and mild temperatures. No major incidences of frost or excessive heat resulted in excellent fruit set, ensuring bunch numbers were solid and fruit was even. Mild Summer temperatures along with decent bursts of rain in January and February benefited the canopy health, freshening the vines and filling out the bunches. The remainder of the ripening period through Autumn was favourable, with night-time temperatures remaining cool, daytime temperatures mild. This enabled a long, slow, and even ripening, helped grapes retain good natural acidity and ensured picking could be carried out at the optimal time.

Vinification details

Grapes were machine picked in the cool of night to retain freshness and flavour. Grapes were crushed and destemmed straight to press with minimal time on skins and to avoid excessive phenolic pickup and to allow for light colour extraction. Free run juice was pressed to tank where it underwent a process of flotation to separate clear juice for fermentation. Free run and pressings parcels were fermented separately. Each batch was fermented using a neutral yeast (EC1118) in stainless steel at cool temperatures (12 -14°c) for approx. 12-14 days. Post fermentation, the wines spent 4-6 weeks on light lees prior to blending, in preparation for secondary fermentation using the Charmat method. Individual vineyards parcels are kept separate until blending in order to create a variable blending pool of options. Individual batches are chosen based on aromatic lift, flavour complexity and cohesiveness within the blend to produce a light, delicate and youthful sparkling . Secondary fermentation occurred in a pressurised stainless steel tanks (Charmat), resulting in persistent, creamy beading, lifted aromatics and fresh fruit flavours.

Vintage conditions

The 2020 growing season started on the back of average winter rainfall in the Adelaide Hills. Spring was characterised by dryer than average conditions, with rainfall down 35%. There were also several frosty mornings from September through to November. Late Spring to early Summer was hot and dry. Although bunch numbers were generally good, the conditions meant that bunch weights were well down and therefore yields across the board were low. January and early February were characterised by mild conditions and some decent rain was highly beneficial for freshening vine canopies and filling out bunches. The remainder of the ripening period through Autumn was favourable, with night-time temperatures remaining cool, daytime temperatures mild and no major heat spikes or rain events. This enabled a long, slow and even ripening, helped grapes retain good natural acidity and ensured they could be picked at the optimal time for flavour and style.

Vinification details

Machine picked in the cool of night to retain freshness and flavour, the grapes were crushed and destemmed straight to press with minimal time on skins to extract only the lightest of colour. Free run juice was pressed to tank where it underwent a process of flotation to separate the clearest juice for fermentation. Each batch was fermented with a neutral yeast (EC1118) in stainless steel at cool temperatures (12 -14°C) for approximately 12-14 days. The wine then only spent 4-6 weeks on light lees prior to blending and secondary fermentation. Using the charmat method, the wine underwent second fermentation in a pressurised tank to give the delicate bubbles prior to bottling young and fresh.

Vintage conditions

A challenging growing season started with May to September’s total rainfall being 33% below average, resulting in low subsoil moisture levels. Low lying areas were affected by several frosty mornings in late September and early October. Generally mild spring conditions resulted in a later and longer flowering period, which was interrupted by a severe spring storm in late November. Heavy rain, strong winds and patches of hail caused damage to shoots and bunches, resulting in poor flowering for most varieties across the region. Cooler than average weather throughout December slowed berry development, suggesting that the 2019 vintage would be later than average. However, a very hot and dry January and February reversed this trend, and when combined with low crop loads, grapes transitioned quickly through véraison and began to ripen rapidly. Careful irrigation management and harvest scheduling ensured that grapes were still harvested at the optimal time for flavour and style. Cooler and dry conditions from mid-March into April provided ideal conditions for ripening of red varieties.

Vinification details

Machine picked in the cool of night to retain freshness and flavour, the grapes were crushed and destemmed straight to press with minimal time on skins to extract only the lightest of colour. Free run juice was pressed to tank where it underwent a process of flotation to separate the clearest juice for fermentation. Each batch was fermented with a neutral yeast (EC1118) in stainless steel at cool temperatures (12 -14°C) for approximately 12-14 days. The wine then only spent 4-6 weeks on light lees prior to blending and secondary fermentation. Using the charmat method, the wine underwent second fermentation in a pressurised tank to give the delicate bubbles prior to bottling young and fresh.