Drumsara Vineyard’s 2007 Pinot Noir Accolades

Drumsara Vineyard’s 2007 Pinot Noir Attracts International And New Zealand Accolades

September 30 2008:The Central Otago boutique vineyard Drumsara has achieved the hat trick, winning gold medals for its 2007 Pinot Noir in three prestigious wine events, including the high profile 2008 UK International Wine and Spirit competition.

The two other gold medals were awarded at New Zealand international wine shows.

Drumsara founder John Matheson is delighted with the response to the 2007 vintage.

“This is obviously our best result yet and it is exciting to get recognition from not just one, but three different international events, which reinforces for us that we have produced something very special with the 2007 Pinot Noir. The awards will certainly raise awareness of Drumsara as an emerging boutique vineyard in both New Zealand and the UK.”

Drumsara is an eight hectare vineyard located high on a glacial outwash gravel plateau overlooking Alexandra and Clyde.

The Matheson family established the vineyard in 2000, planting the first grapes on a one hectare block. Drumsara’s first award came at the 2004 Bragato Wine Awards with a bronze medal for its 2003 Pinot Noir.

In 2006 Drumsara attracted its first international recognition when its 2004 Pinot Noir won a gold medal at the Starwine International Wine Competition in New York.

But Mr Matheson says the three 2008 gold medals are the high point and the culmination of dedication and commitment by everyone involved at Drumsara.

“We always hoped our wine would have this sort of success and we are very proud of the results.”

The gold winning 2007 Pinot Noir is produced from grapes from the vineyard’s Ventifacts Block.

“This block, which takes its name from the rock formation on the property formed thousands of years ago, produces our premium Pinot Noir fruit,” says Mr Matheson. “Our success is due to the hard yards put in by our viticulturalist, Lisa Whipp, and the rest of the team at Drumsara. The management of the vineyard is crucial in supplying the fruit, in the best condition possible, to the winemakers.”

Winemaker Dave Grant of William Hill Winery in Alexandra says the gold medals are a significant achievement for Drumsara.

“The owners and the viticulturalist are very particular and the fruit supplied to us is of consistently good quality and has an excellent concentration of flavours and colours. The nutrition of the grapes is good and during winemaking we use as little intervention as possible basically letting the fruit do the talking itself.”

He paid tribute to the talents of French winemakers on the team, Anthony Worch and Marion Vialade, who brought a high level of expertise to the winemaking process for the Drumsara vintage.

Mr Matheson says while the trio of gold medals is a milestone for the young Drumsara vineyard it is also important for the Alexandra, Clyde and Earnscleugh winegrowing region, underlining its role in Central Otago as a wine producing area.

“For a long time we have not been recognised, but with this success for Drumsara, and an increasing number of awards to other labels in our region, we are proving that we can produce top wines alongside other areas of Central Otago and New Zealand.”

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