Whitehaven Marlborough Pinot Noir Rose 2023

Colour / Appearance: Bright, pale blush-pink.

Aroma / Bouquet: Freshly scented with gentle watermelon, strawberry, cherries, and wildflowers

Palate: Flavoursome and delicate Pinot Noir Rose with a bright, fresh acidity that supports the bright red fruits and floral notes. These persist on the lengthy, clean finish. A refreshing wine in a bone-dry style with a mouth-tingling and lively acidity.

This Rosé is sourced from our Pinot Noir estate grown fruit on Pauls Road (Rapaura area) and Little Alfred (Southern Valleys) vineyards. The vines were trained to 2-3 cane VSP. Throughout the growing season the vines were thoughtfully managed, with open canopies and prudent crop thinning helping to create fully ripe, clean fruit come harvest time. The 2022 growing season started with soil moisture at capacity, following an unusually wet winter which had seen flooding in parts of the region. Pleasingly, the region did not suffer any major frost events and despite conditions in November being a little wet, the warmth that went with it meant that flowering was not drawn out and resulted in good fruit set and the prospect of healthy yields. The remainder of the season was punctuated by cooler weather and rainfall events, and we were vigilant around disease pressure as we entered the harvest period. Harvest was later this year and Brix accumulation was slow. We experienced another rain event in the final third of March which then required us to harvest as quickly as possible in many blocks to retain pure fruit expression. This is where Whitehaven’s new receival building came to the fore, allowing greater throughput while maintain the quality focus and attention to detail that Whitehaven prides itself on.

Harvest Date: Multiple pick dates from the 15th to 17th March 2022

The fruit was machine-harvested, destemmed, and pressed at the winery to ensure the desired level of colour and flavour extraction. Using only the early ‘free run’ juice, fermentation was at cool temperatures with selected yeast to create a wine with pure fruit flavours and freshness.

Winemaker: Diana Katardzhieva