Valli Waitaki Vineyard Pinot Gris 2021

VALLI is the personal vocation of pioneering winemaker Grant Taylor. Grant’s name is synonymous with Otago Pinot Noir. He has been crafting wines there since 1993 when there were only 20 ha planted – today there are over 2000. Grant founded VALLI in 1998 with the intention to produce single vineyard Pinot Noirs highlighting the different characteristics of Otago’s sub regions. More than 20 years later, VALLI is doing just that, producing single-vineyard pinot noirs from Gibbston, Bannockburn, and Bendigo in Central Otago and the Waitaki Valley in North Otago, as well as a dry Pinot Gris from Gibbston and a Riesling from Waitaki. In 2015, established Otago winemaker Jen Parr joined Grant in the winery, where the two aim to create wines with honesty, integrity, and most of all, a sense of place. When you drink a Valli wine, you are enjoying more than just a wine: you are experiencing a place.

Waitaki is New Zealand’s newest and most exciting wine growing region, with the first commercial vintage being in 2004. Like Burgundy, the soils are limestone based. These soils lend an incredible ethereal nature to the wines, which are highlighted by perfume and minerality. Slightly cooler than Central Otago, the Waitaki Valley should not be cropped as heavily, and therefore Valli’s Waitaki Vineyard is close planted at 5000 vines per hectare with early ripening clones from Dijon and Pommard.

The grapes for the Valli Waitaki Vineyard Pinot Gris 2021 were handpicked from low yielding vines, with grapes picked at 2 different picking windows around a month apart. Both lots were whole bunch pressed for gentle extraction, after overnight settling, 61% was racked to neutral white barrels  and the rest was racked to a stainless steel tank. The fermentation was intentionally long and slow with partial malolactic fermentation occurring and delayed sulphuring which resulted in a crisp dry wine with a silky and generous texture.

A light golden hue with aromas of white peach, ripe pear, lemon zest, orchid and oyster shell. The palate is complex and layered with flavours of citrus, stone fruit, white blossom and sea salt that complement a richly textured palate with perfectly appointed acidity that lingers intensely on the finish. This sophisticated young wine is both charming and intense. It aptly captures the ethereal nature of the Waitaki and has great aging potential.