Mike Wolfenden on the development of Felton Road Chardonnay style

This show was published 15 February 2016

Overview

Mike is the assistant winemaker at Felton Road, Bannockburn. In this interview we discuss how the wine styles and wine making approach have evolved in the last few decades in Central Otago, a wine region which was in its infancy only 20 years ago. We taste a 2003 oaked Chardonnay vs a 2013. The style has moved away from ripe fruit, buttery characteristics and the wines are now being fermented in old oak barrels rather than new. The age of the vine also contributes to the changing style and now that the vines are older they are better at giving the wine a true sense of place. The viticulture approach has changed - there are more organic vineyards as well as biodynamic, e.g. Rippon in Wanaka - with vineyards focusing more on the soils and not just the vines.

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