Pinot Noir “Moonlight Race” Central Otago 2020 – Burn Cottage

“Moonlight Race” incorporates fruit from three vineyards; Burn Cottage’s own biodynamic estate (21%), organically managed Northburn Vineyard (20%) and sustainably farmed Mark II Vineyard (59%). The marriage creates a vibrant reflection of classic Central Otago Pinot Noir. Soils are a mix of glacial fans and washes previously used for alluvial gold: stony loams, river stones, clays and schist.

Burn Cottage refers to the name of the road on which this 28 hectare property sits in Lowburn, Central Otago. The estate was once a sheep paddock until it was purchased by Marquis Sauvage in 2002. Marquis enlisted Ted Lemon of Sonoma Coast’s famous Littorai as their winemaker and together they decided to plant Pinot Noir in 2003. Six years later, they released their first wine. In order to select the best sites for their Pinot Noir, they dug 60 soil pits and subsequently selected ten clones to plant on five different rootstocks tailored to the different soil profiles. Burn Cottage is distinguished in Central Otago as the first and only estate in the region to have practised biodynamics since day one. This was Ted Lemon’s one stipulation for his involvement. The winemaking at Burn Cottage is best described as ‘minimal intervention’. There is no addition of yeasts or bacteria for fermentations, with minimal sulphur use and no filtration before bottling.