Our wine displays a beguiling and sophisticated pink colour in the bottle and glass. The wine opens with aromas of peach and wildflowers, followed by layers of Asian pear, chamomile, apricot and freshly baked brioche. On the palate white peach, pink grapefruit, cranberry and watermelon flavours are intertwined with orange blossom honey, elderflower and toast complexity.
The bright core of natural acid and poised dosage ensures great length, persistence, and a balanced finish. Enjoy this versatile and elegant wine with someone special and a seasonal grazing platter.
The Bungamero Vineyard was established in 1990 by industry expert Mark Walpole and his brother Tim. The brothers realised that the climate, soils and topography were ideal for a premium vineyard in the Alpine Valleys. The secret to the Bungamero Vineyard success is really no secret at all – industry experience and passion, attention to detail and a great vineyard site.
THE WINEMAKING
Picked on the 2nd March 2023 in the early morning at 8°C with a baumé of 10.8. The wine was then gently crushed to press where it was held on skins for 4 hours to extract the beautiful and enticing colour for our Pinot Grigio Rosé. It was then gently pressed and only the cuvée was used for the final blend. The wine was racked partially cloudy and warmed to a tank where it was seeded with a sparkling yeast isolate. The wine fermented for 20 days at a temperature of between 12 - 14°C. In the last third of the ferment the wine was stirred daily to impart ferment lees complexity into the wine. The wine was left on yeast lees with weekly stirring to protect the freshness in the wine and add complexity. 2023 vintage base wine was the starting point for this single vineyard wine. Blending in a small proportion of 2024 base wine achieves the principle of a stylistically consistent wine with greater complexity plus additional nuances of aroma and flavour. The blended base wine was charmat fermented slowly at 14°C with a specially selected yeast allowing the natural CO² produced to be retained in the wine and increased alcohol and complexity. After completion of this secondary fermentation the wine was chilled and filtered off yeast lees. At this stage, the wine received a small addition of expedition liquor to provide the final balance and structure. The wine was bottled under crown seal closure.
THE VINTAGE
The 2023 vintage will go down as not only one of the latest on record, but also one of the most challenging in recent memory. A third La Niña event in a row made for a much cooler and wetter spring followed by a cool summer and autumn with small
rain events that certainly kept us on our toes. Whilst the weather made for some stressful and very busy periods, we were able to harvest everything at optimum ripeness and clean of disease. The below average crop levels coupled with a long slow ripening have produced wines that have intense aromatics, ripe flavours and all the hallmarks of age-worthiness. An excellent vintage.
