Beginning with meticulous site selection and vineyard design started in 1991, Felton Road's story is one of refusal to compromise. A strict 100% estate policy with fully organic and biodynamic viticulture (Demeter certified) ensures that our fruit arrives at the winery as pure as it can be, while our entire estate comes as close to true sustainability as is possible. A commitment to hands off winemaking: gravity flow, wild yeasts, wild malo, an avoidance of fining and filtration all help preserve the wine's expression of its terroir. No additions or adjustments are performed unless they absolutely need to be.
Felton Road farms four properties totalling 34 ha in the Bannockburn subregion of Central Otago. Calvert Vineyard is located on Felton Road and is just 1km east of The Elms Vineyard and the winery. The soils at Calvert are deep heavy silts with a thin layer of loess topsoil. Meticulous summer management of a single vertical shoot positioned (VSP) canopy ensures even and early fruit maturity.
The unique gravity flow winery enabled the grapes to be gently destemmed directly into open-top fermenters without harsh pumping with approximately 25% retained as whole clusters. Long pre-fermentation soaks of 8-10 days prior to fermentation with indigenous yeasts and punched down by hand up to two times per day with a total time on skins of 21-24 days. Pressed off and barrels filled immediately by gravity to the underground barrel cellars. The wine spent 16 months in barrel (28% new French) with two rackings and no fining or filtration, before bottling in early-September 2023.
Characteristic Calvert florals lead the nose with violets and dark rose petals dominating. The warmer 2022 vintage attempts to outplay the vineyard character, but as we have come to learn with this vineyard, Calvertness is rarely, if ever, outclassed. The deep silt soils and naturally moderated vine vigour provides intensity and detailed, elegant tannins. Fine and regal: a classic Calvert.
