Seresin Rachel Pinot Noir 2016

A mystical blend from two vineyard sites, Rachel is aptly named after Michael Seresin’s mother. Hugely evocative and aromatic, the nose is a heady perfume of both earthy, forest floor notes and wild mushroom, that combine perfectly with bright floral notes and ripe fruit. The palate is hugely structured and concentrated with a dense core of ripe fruit which is supported by firm tannins and savoury spice, contributed by well seasoned new French oak barrels. Rachel is a wine that will age gracefully for many years to come.

The main portion of fruit for this wine is derived from our clay-rich hillside ‘Raupo Creek’ vineyard, in the Omaka Valley, with the balance coming from the alluvial shingles of the Tatou vineyard. Each vine is hand tended throughout the season to create a balanced canopy and optimise fruit quality.

Fruit was hand-picked, destemmed and cooled. After pre-fermentation steeping, the juice was warmed and fermented with wild yeast, and the caps hand-plunged twice a day during fermentation. The wine was left on skins for 2 weeks of post ferment maceration, then drained, lightly pressed and transferred to French oak barriques, of which 7% were new. The wine went through natural malolactic fermentation during 18 months maturation, before it was bottled unfiltered and unfined.