Chard Farm Pinot Noir 2001, NZ

Finla Mor has flavours of plum, black cherry, spice and berry fruit, soft toasty oak and fine tannin structure. Drink now or will improve till 2007.

Producer: Chard Farm is one of the top wineries in New Zealand's Central Otago wine region. It is situated along a narrow gravel road beside the precipitous Kawarau Gorge (where you can bungy jump). But the sloping terrace, which was once an orchard and market garden and is now covered in vines, is a warm microclimate. Rob and Greg Hay were the first in Central to search for a specific vineyard site – other early growers planted grapes where they happened to live. The home vineyard was planted in 1987 and since then the Hay brothers have helped set up many Central Otago vineyards and made wine under contract for others. At present Chard Farm has 35 hectares in vines, and buys in around 30% of its grapes. The large winery has recently been extended to include a dedicated Pinot Noir cellar and an underground barrel cellar. Over the years Chard Farm has consistently won awards for its wines. It produces several Pinot Noirs (2001 Finla Mor and 2001 River Run Pinot Noir earned four stars), Closeburn and the well-known Judge and Jury Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc (the 2002 earned four stars), Pinot Gris (four stars for the 2001), Gewürztraminer and Riesling (the 2001 also earned four stars).

Grape: Pinot Noir (pronounced PEA-no NWAHR), the grape that produces Burgundy's finest red wines, is one of the hardest to grow. This thin-skinned variety is generally an early budder and ripener, so it is best-suited to cool, marginal climates – 40 to 50 degrees latitude – and only produces good wine when the fruit is controlled to very low yields.

Region: Central Otago, or 'Central' as the locals call it, is the most southerly wine region in the world, situated at 45 degrees latitude on New Zealand's South Island. Its location gives the region very long sunshine hours (the further away from the equator you are, the longer the days are in summer) as well as a continental climate, due to its inland position, with big variations between daytime and night-time temperatures. The nearby Southern Alps shelter the vineyards from rain, so most only receive around 454mm a year. Alluvial gravels and schist from glacial valleys give fast-draining soils too, so many vineyards require irrigation. The lack of rain, however, does mean a lack of humidity, which is perfect for avoiding many of the fungi that can attack vineyards in other regions.

Central Otago breaks down into four distinct sub-regions, separated by mountains and deep gorges. These are Cromwell, which accounts for approximately 70 per cent of the region’s vineyards and includes Bannockburn, Lowburn, Wanaka Road and Bendigo within its boundaries; Gibbston, with approximately 20 per cent of the vineyards; Alexandra with eight per cent and, finally, Wanaka with less than three per cent. Pinot Noir is the stunner coming out of Central, but other grapes do well, including Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Riesling.

Style: More to accompany a special dinner than for everyday drinking, these wines are showing more complex flavours and some will improve with a few more years of ageing. Includes Pinot Noir, a wine that tends to be lighter in colour, body and tannins because of the grape’s thin skin. As the wine matures it develops gamey characteristics and much fuller fruit flavours.

Similar Style Wines