From Two Vines to One Barrel and 96 points
What began with just two mother vines, painstakingly selected and nurtured, became a slow, deliberate journey of massal selection and grafting across our vineyard. Years of dedication, and Hans unrelenting patience, were required before we could coax a single barrel from our young Blaufrnkisch vines.

We are proud to be the only winery in New Zealand to grow and craft this noble Austrian variety. Just 260 bottles of remarkable elegance and purity, handmade with the precision of a Grand Cru Burgundy, and highly rated by James Suckling, are available for true connoisseurs.

Vintage 2021

Blaufrnkisch is site-sensitive, requiring warmth to ripen fully, yet cool nights to preserve its hallmark freshness. Marlboroughs long sunny days and crisp evenings provide the perfect balance.

Poor flowering led to yields even lower than our already modest crop from just two short canes, typical of this noble grape. A long, warm season followed, and we handpicked juicy, concentrated berries in early April with excellent sugar levels and phenolic ripeness.

Hans’ Winemaking Comments

Perfectly healthy, destemmed grapes underwent a long cold soak to extract flavour, antioxidants, and skin-borne nutrients for the wild yeast to thrive. This gentle pre-fermentation phase allowed indigenous yeasts to initiate fermentation naturally, without temperature spikes.

A long, cool wild yeast fermentation was followed by extended post-maceration to preserve delicate aromas, deepen colour, and shape elegant, supple tannins. After gentle pressing, the young wine matured in fine French barriques, undergoing natural malolactic fermentation to enhance aromatic finesse and complexity.

Over 18 months, minimal oxygen exchange on fine lees softened acidity and tannin, integrating structure without excessive wood influence. The result: a richly textured, complex wine, built to evolve beautifully in bottle. No fining, no filtration, and only minimal effective sulphur. An additional 18 months of bottle age completed the levage,no detail spared.

Tasting Notes

Heavenly blueberries, black cherries mingle with baking spices, pepper and dark chocolate with chilli. Elegant and ethereal with smooth, soft tannings and savoury acidity. Highly refined and beautifully balanced. Our low yield philosophy makes for a deep intensity which reflects the earthy minerality of our gravelly soils. A hand-crafted wine made very much in the mould of fine red Burgundy with an impressive and persistence finish.

Technical Data

100% Blaufrankisch

Shallow (<45cm) gravel, sand-clay. Well drained. Developed from stony alluvium.

5,500 vines/ha

1.5t/ha

<1 g/L

Food Matching Suggestions

Hans enjoys it with roast beef or a ribeye steak, dishes whose richness beautifully contrasts the wines vibrant freshness and purity of fruit.

Industry Reviews

James Suckling – 96 points

‘Wild aromas of flowers such as dark hibiscus and violets as well as wild blackberries and brambleberries. Medium-bodied, this has a wonderful depth of fruit and a finish that grows with racy tannins that last for minutes. A shame only one barrel was made. Fabulous Blaufrnkisch.‘