Highfield Field Notes
Pruning 2008

Welcome to the field notes newsletter

Winter is well upon us; noted by the frosty mornings and snow capped mountain ranges surrounding Highfield. It’s usually a beautiful time of the year with sunny, still days and crisp, clear nights. Although we too have been hit by the lastest storm with power outages, floods and severe gales. The vines are bare and we're halfway through pruning. 

At the Winery

The winery team is busy blending the 2008 vintage Sauvignon Blanc. Once the blend is complete, the wine will sit in tank for three months to age on yeast lees before being bottled and released later this year. “We choose not to rush out any of our wines and Sauvignon Blanc is no exception. We prefer to let the wine sit and mature slightly at the winery, creating a more complex and well rounded style. Once our Sauvignon Blanc is released, you can be sure it’s softened and ready to drink.” Alistair Soper, Winemaker  

Vintage Report

With a warm, sunny growing season and fantastic weather in the build up to harvest, many grape varieties ripened at the same time leading to logistical and congestion issues at the winery. Chardonnay for the Elstree Cuvée Brut was picked first, with only time for a quick beer to celebrate the start of harvest before the boys were straight into the gruelling task of handpicking Pinot Noir. Picking bin after picking bin were laid out along endless rows, filled with grapes, picked up again and taken to the winery. The telling sign that the season was going to get hectic very quickly was when the influx of Sauvignon Blanc started before all the Pinot Noir was housed in the winery. With some Sauvignon Blanc crops harvested above estimates, Highfield harvest records were broken not only in the amount of fruit harvested and processed in a 24 hour period, but also the quantities of wine being moved about in the winery to create space for the next day’s harvesting. With the long range weather forecast not looking good, another gear in the transmission was found and with the accelerator to the floor the race was on to beat the weather. With most of the Sauvignon grapes picked off the vines, the rain started to fall. Overall, it was a challenging vintage but the wines will be rewarding.

The Elstree Cuvée Brut 2004 has just been released. Made in Highfield’s celebrated Elstree style, three years maturation on yeast lees has provided toasty, yeasty aromas which complement the fruity flavours of this elegant méthode traditionelle. Natural lively acids have mellowed during the maturation process resulting in a balanced, creamy mouth-feel. Citrus flavours come through quite strongly with touches of apple. The wine is persistent and full bodied with a smooth texture and a very crisp dry finish. The 2003/2004 growing season was fairly cool for Marlborough, particularly January and February. This cooler weather shaped a long drawn out ripening period which is great for flavour and sugar development. The Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes for the sparkling base both benefited from this cooler weather with fantastic fruit aromas and fine texture. “The Elstree Cuvée Brut is a classic aperitif so it’s perfect on its own to get the tastes buds bursting. I’ve also been enjoying this vintage with fresh shucked Nelson oysters.” Alistair Soper, Winemaker

Savalicous Sauvignon Blanc

We have this Savalicous Sauvignon Blanc case offer for our special New Zealand Field Notes customers;

12 bottles for $220

“Fleshy, ripe and rich. Scented bouquet of passionfruit and herbs, with a hint of sweaty armpit, leading into a very fresh and concentrated palate with crisp, lively acidity and a finely balanced, well-rounded finish.”  Winestate Magazine 2008, Michael Cooper. This wine won an Elite gold medal at the Air New Zealand Wine Awards 2007 and received Top 3 New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc in Cuisine Magazine 2008. 

Soaring Savvy

Air New Zealand has selected Highfield Sauvignon Blanc 2007 to be served mid-air to Business Premier travellers from August through to January. Eva Airlines of Taiwan has also chosen Highfield Sauvignon Blanc 2007 for its business class service. Airline wine selectors are occasionally known to conduct their wine tastings at high altitude. Apparently, flavours in the wine can change at soaring heights due to atmospheric pressure. So a wine that tastes great on land, can be disappointing mid-air and vice versa. We can say, from awards and selections won at all heights, Highfield Sauvignon Blanc 2007 is a winner at all levels.   

Sex and the City Premier

Earlier this month Highfield set out to get in touch with its feminine side by supporting Regional Wines and Spirit’s Wellington premier of Sex and the City. For too long the wonderful women working in Wellington hospitality had been overlooked by the trade’s male-centric junkets. Regional Wines, who as I’m sure you’ll all know is the best Wellington fine wine retailer, decided that needed to be rectified. The glamorous, New York-style event was a huge success with attendees being treated to Highfield bubbles, Cosmopolitan cocktails, New Zealand fashion and Sarah Jessica Parker (on screen).

How to………. serve a bottle of wine

Our cellar door team are always being asked for wine service protocol so we thought we’d get Claudia Yanez, Highfield’s Cellar Door Manager to explain;

Serving temperature

Serving a bottle of wine that is too cold or too warm can reduce the flavours and aromas of any wine. We think it’s a good idea to keep the following notes in mind;

The wines that you’ll enjoy super chilled (8-10°C) are normally Sparkling wines, Méthode traditionelle and Champagne styles. Medium to full-bodied white wines, like Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay and light reds, like Pinot Noir, are best only lightly chilled (11-14°C). Leave medium to full bodied reds, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Bordeaux blends at room temperature (15-18°C).

Opening wines

Most New Zealand wines come with screw caps. To open this kind of bottle, hold the bottom of the bottle firmly with one hand and with the other hand firmly on the cap, turn the bottle clock wise. You can also find a large number of wineries from all over the world still using cork to protect their vintages, and there are many gadgets on the market that can help you open a bottle of wine in a very easy way.

The Glass

Selecting the right glass for the right wine can be very confusing. Be sure that the glass is clear, not coloured, with a stem long enough to fit all your fingers on. There are endless shapes on the market and this is an important factor; make sure that the glass is wider at the bottom and narrow at the top. Make sure your nose fits into the glass so you can give it a big sniff. Pick a large size, so you can serve a generous amount of your favourite wine. Generally, use larger, balloon bowl glasses for red wines and for full-bodied whites like Chardonnay. These wines benefit from more oxygen so swirling the wine in a large bowl helps to open up the wine and release aromas. Avoid over swirling though, which can lead to red wine splatters all over your neighbour’s expensive white dress or yourself. Be careful not to become too over enthusiastic by swirling all manner of drinks, including water and juice; this just looks obsessive. Light and medium bodied white wines, like Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling need only a modest bowl. It’s also handy to choose wine glasses that actually fit into your dishwasher. There’s nothing worse than having to hand wash 20 delicate wine glasses after a dinner party. Of course, use champagne flutes for all bubbly wines. Swirling bubbly wine however will only flatten the bubbles so this is not recommended. Often die hard wine buffs will have two or three glasses on the table for the range of wines being served throughout the meal. Don’t forget water glasses.
Wine Edict

Always pour for guests first and pouring for women before men will still get you brownie points. Only pour glasses 1/3 to 1/2 full. This allows for swirling, sniffing and all the rest of that posh wine buff stuff. It also means you can try more wines if there are a few bottles going.

Keep warm and dry out there

The Highfield team