WINEMAKER’S COMMENTS A lifted bouquet of ripe citrus-lime and spring-blossom aromas. The palate is beautifully balanced with intense flavours, great length and a zesty lime finish. VINTAGE Marlborough experienced a drier than normal year helping keep disease levels very low. The accumulated growing degree-days were slightly higher than the long-term average; this was due to warmer night-time temperatures as apposed to higher daytime temperatures. The fact the fruit was so clean enabled the harvest read more...WINEMAKER’S COMMENTS A lifted bouquet of ripe citrus-lime and spring-blossom aromas. The palate is beautifully balanced with intense flavours, great length and a zesty lime finish. VINTAGE Marlborough experienced a drier than normal year helping keep disease levels very low. The accumulated growing degree-days were slightly higher than the long-term average; this was due to warmer night-time temperatures as apposed to higher daytime temperatures. The fact the fruit was so clean enabled the harvest to occur at the optimal time so as to capture the maximum vineyard flavours. VINEYARDS Villa Maria’s Riesling vineyards are scattered throughout both the Awatere and Wairau Valleys of Marlborough. The vineyards are managed to ensure ripe and clean fruit. Timely canopy management activities such as shoot thinning and leaf plucking along with an attention to vine health optimises the opportunity for the ideal vineyard flavours at harvest. WINEMAKING The grapes for this wine were harvested in the cool of the morning, then gently pressed and naturally settled before fermentation. This wine was then fermented using neutral yeasts and cool fermentation techniques, which aided in savouring the delicate Riesling aromatics. The ferment was stopped at just the right time to give an off-dry styled wine. The wine was then blended, lightly fined and stabilised prior to bottling. (hide)