Syrah Hawkes Bay 2018 – Blank Canvas

To produce the Syrah Hawkes Bay Blank Canvas, Matt and Sophie co-fermented the hand-picked Syrah with a small proportion of Grüner Veltliner skins. A 60% whole-bunch component was used in the fermentation process to give further complexity and tannin structure. The tank was hand-plunged and malolactic fermentation was allowed to occur naturally. The wine was then aged for 14 months in both new and seasoned French oak before it was bottled, without filtration.

A parcel of special Syrah fruit was sourced from a single vineyard run by a good friend of Matt and Sophie’s in Hawkes Bay’s famous Gimblett Gravels sub-region. The vineyard is over 15 years old with very low-yielding vines, thanks to the free-draining nature of the historic riverbed soils. The vines are trained by Vertical Shoot Positioning and cane-pruned on a single fruiting wire with high density planting. The vineyard is managed with true respect to the land and environment, with no herbicides or systemic controls used.

Blank Canvas is the vinous studio of award-winning international winemaking consultant Matt Thomson and Master of Wine Sophie Parker-Thomson. With over 40 years of collective experience in the global wine industry, they produce small batch fine wines from exceptional single vineyard sites throughout New Zealand under their art-meets-science project. Matt has worked over fifty vintages in numerous wine regions around the world and has worked with David Gleave since 1994. Sophie has been travelling to Europe and working with Matt since 2011, leaving her career in law behind her. This international experience is the founding inspiration for this husband-and-wife team.