A glorious sunny day greeted us for the final day of Tour 1. The Remarkables mountain looked stunning with glistening snow-capped peaks.
Nightmare for the vineyards – frost is very dangerous to the young buds that are just emerging and the helicopters have been on duty trying to suck warmer air down and keep the frost at bay.
Our first stop was Valli Vineyards – owned by Grant Taylor. Grant was a Central Otago pioneer in the early 1990’s and has vineyards in four key areas: Gibbston Valley, Bendigo, Bannockurn and Waitaki.
We tasted four Pinot Noirs from the 2013 vintage – each showing a distinct regional difference.
This was a truly amazing tasting of Central Otago terroir and each wine had clear distinctions.
Grant was a pleasure to meet and absolutely passionate about what he does and he remains very excited about the potential for the region.
Next up was Mount Difficulty – one of the best known wineries in Bannockburn – a very highly regarded sub district.
This estate has the most stunning views and we lunched on some delicious platters taking in the glorious countryside.
We tasted 11 wines in 35 minutes – surely a record. Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noirs, Late harvest Pinot Gris, Botrytis Riesling, sweet Chenin Blanc – it was a phenomenal range.
From Mt Difficulty we did a short hop to Aurum wines. Lucy and Brook showed us round and we tasted through an eclectic selection of their wines.
They have 5 hectares of organic vines with Pinot Gris proving to be very versatile and contributing to a variety of different styles.
We finished off with a bone dry Pinot Gris called Amber that was made in an amphora – fascinating stuff from utterly delightful people.
Dinner on the last night was heartily enjoyed in Queenstown – a truly memorable tour……and Tour 2 starts on Thursday!