Valli Burn Cottage Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022

Product Information: Over the course of several months in 2013, Valli owner Grant Taylor decided that it would be great fun to swap grapes another fabulous estate vineyard and make the wines, teaming up with cult-level producers Burn Cottage vineyard. Thankfully this novel collaboration continues today. If you’re lucky enough to try some, the palate has a memorable creamy texture with fine tannin and great length. This is powerful and finessed wine that is intriguing in its youth and will continue to evolve with great interest for 10+ years. More about Burn Cottage – Husband and wife Marquis Sauvage and Dianne Sauvage were on a return trip from the Mornington Peninsula in Australia and had decided to visit several regions in New Zealand before returning to their home in Chicago. Dianne and Marquis were struck by the extraordinary beauty of Central Otago and became even more impressed after tasting through the region’s wines, particularly Felton Road and Gibbston Valley. They decided that they had found the place they were looking for. Burn Cottage Vineyard is a twenty four hectare estate in the foothills of the Pisa range in Central Otago, New Zealand. The Sauvage family have been farming biodynamically from the beginning in 2002, when no one else was doing it. Their wines are extraordinarily textural, stylistically light-footed and perfumed. Maker: Valli is the personal vocation of pioneering winemaker Grant Taylor a name that’s 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 Valliin 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. Vineyard: For Valli, it is a fascinating journey collaborating with Burn Cottage vineyard. With each ‘grape-swap’ Valli continues to observe some persistent characteristics of Burn Cottage’s vineyard that are evident regardless of seasonal changes. Working with Burn Cottage has helped Valli achieve greater perspective about their own vineyards as well as helping to hone their winemaking intuition. Burn Cottage vineyard has 10 hectares of vines on 24 hectares of land devoted to creating an enclosed and biodynamic farm system. The Highland Cattle provides integrated grazing of pastures and supply manure for integral compost programs. They also keep bees and have planted an olive grove to produce olive oil in the future. At Burn Cottage biodiversity is the corner stone of healthy farming, thus native species of New Zealand plants, bushes and trees have also been planted to restore native habitats. The energetic and crystalline wines the site produces stand as palpable evidence of their success. Nose – Earthy, Red-Blue Fruits, Forest Floor The nose is immediately earthy with red and blue fruit enveloping the graphite, mushroom, and earthy loam. Palate – Focused, Fresh Fruit, Tension The wine is quite focused with fresh fruit and persistent acidity driving the palate. The earthiness is reminiscent of previous vintages, a characteristic that we now regard as a hallmark of this Burn Cottage site. Finish – Graphite, Fine Tannin, Wildflowers The palate is generous and dynamic with fine tannin and great length. (2019) The nose is immediately earthy with red and blue fruit enveloping the graphite, mushroom, and earthy loam. There is also a lovely hint of wildflowers at the finish. The wine is quite focused with fresh fruit and persistent acidity driving the palate. The earthiness is reminiscent of previous vintages, a characteristic that we now regard as a hallmark of this Burn Cottage site. The palate is generous and dynamic with fine tannin and great length. – Jen Parr, Winemaker. The Finer Details Style – Red Wine Varietal – Pinot Noir Country – New Zealand Region – Central Otago Vintage – 2022 Bottle Size – 750ml ABV – 13%