Astrolabe Kēkerengū Coast Albariño 2020

Albariño is the famous white grape variety of the Atlantic coast of Spain and Portugal, particularly the Rias Baixas region in Galicia. Albariño thrives in the temperate and maritime, of which Marlborough climate resembles. It is a relatively new grape variety in New Zealand, with the first plantings in 2009 and Astrolabe Wine in Marlborough’s first harvest, from a Galician clone, merely in 2013.

All of the Albariño fruits to make the wine come from the vines grown at Sleepers Vineyard by Chris and Lynne Wilson, undoubtly a single vineyard product. The vineyard is located near Kēkerengū Coast. The area is the Southern-most part of Marlborough. Despite Marlborough is well-known for viticulture, very few wine producers have vine plantings in Southern Coast that includes Kēkerengū. However due to heavy Southern Pacific oceanic influence, the sub-region has great potential to yield certain high quality grape varieties.

Sleepers Vineyard is located on a slightly elevated river terrace of deep silt loam interspersed with fragmented limestone. The vines at Kēkerengū are amongst the first to see bud-burst, but the cooler temperatures prolong the growing season. The Albariño is the last of all fruit to be harvested, some years well into mid to late April, while much of Marlborough finishes harvest in mid-March.

The Standard trellis with pruning to two canes and vertical shoot positioning. Vines are trimmed closely, well tucked, and leaf plucking is minimal. Cluster thinning is used to ensure light crops, evenly ripened and balanced fruit.

Upon fruits ripen, they are hand picked and whole bunch pressed. Fermented on grape solids with a selected yeast strain, and aged on lees. Half was fermented and aged in a stainless steel tank and the other portion in old French oak barriques which went through malolactic fermentation with barrel stirring. Vintage 2020 was harvest on 3rd April.