The Vineyard
Budenberg Vineyard is owned by Ian and Rosie Budenberg and farmed by Mark Whisson.
Site location: Piccadilly Valley – Adelaide Hills
Map coordinates: -34.97274,138.744384
Clones: Majority 114 & 115, 1 row of MV6
Planted: 1995
Elevation: 540 meters
Soil: Clay loam and shale with a mix of large pieces ironstone, blue stone and some quartz. An incredibly steep and rocky site.
Aspect: East facing
Rows: 19, 37-44, 66-69, 74-76.
Harvest: 20th March 2013
Tonnes: 2.25T
The Winemaking
Hand-picked and destemmed to an open-top fermenter with 20% whole bunches, followed by a 5 day cold soak prior to fermentation.
Gently hand plunged twice daily, with the ferment temperature peaking at 30°C.
Basket pressed directly to oak for 10 months maturation, 100% French, 40% new oak.
Unfined, unfiltered and vegan.
Bottled 25th February 2014 – 1,866 bottles
The Wine
The pickers always complain about picking this vineyard and rightly so – this block is steep & it’s a big hill to climb for not many bunches of grapes.
Complex and intriguing, raspberry fruits with Kaffir lime leaf. This masculine Pinot shows well-structured tannins and a solid minerality, you can almost taste the ironstone.
Drinking... Drink now or cellar for 10+ years.
Alcohol 13.5% alc/vol
Reviews
93 points - James Halliday, Halliday Wine Companion
93 points - Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
92 points - Huon Hooke