Non Vintage Cuvée Brut
Oyster Bay
Hawke's Bay Cuvée Brut
“Radiant lime, citrus and white peach, accentuated by a finely bubbled palate with a crisp, refreshing finish.”
- MICHAEL IVICEVICH, CHIEF WINEMAKER
The philosophy of Oyster Bay is to produce fine, distinctively regional wines that are elegant and assertive with glorious fruit flavours. Oyster Bay Sparkling Cuvée is made to capture and showcase New Zealand’s unique cool-climate varietal intensity by embracing the best of modern New World winemaking technology.
Oyster Bay Sparkling Cuvée Brut is made from 100% Chardonnay grapes which give the wine elegance, finesse and minerality. We select premium Chardonnay clones with small, intensely flavoured grapes. The vines are grown on ancient alluvial river terraces and produce concentrated, pure varietal flavour along with a natural zesty acidity, which is ideal for creating Super Premium sparkling wine. We harvest the fruit early and use neutral yeasts to accentuate the Chardonnay varietal character. The lively bubbles in the wine are a result of natural secondary fermentation, which brings to life the delightful and refreshing character. Oyster Bay Sparkling Cuvée, New Zealand at its sparkling best.
Winemaking
The free-run juice is cold settled to partial clarity, followed by a slow, temperature controlled primary fermentation at 14°C for several weeks to develop the elegant, assertive flavours in the base wine.
The base wine (Cuvée) is then inoculated with a neutral yeast to undertake a secondary pressure tank fermentation to develop the naturally delicate, finely bubbled palate and refreshing finish in the wine.
Following a period of yeast lees contact to build layers of complexity and mouth-feel in the finished wine, the wine is bottled young to capture the fresh, varietal intensity.
Sustainable Winegrowing
As a founding member of Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand, we have always recognised nature as the true producer of our wines. We are conscious of our environment and we work hard to identify sensitive areas such as wetlands, streams and native vegetation to ensure that our vineyard practices do not affect the plants and animals that inhabit these areas. We minimise our water usage through our state-of-the-art computer models and soil moisture probe technology. We look after our soils by having inter-row round cover plantings (rather than bare earth), and by throwing our clippings underneath our vines, to provide a botanically diverse ground which encourages beneficial insects into our vineyards.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Oyster Bay Sparkling Cuvée Brut
VARIETAL COMPOSITION
| 100% Chardonnay |
VINE CLONES
| Mendoza, 2/23 and Clone 6, Dijon B95 Chardonnay clones were selected to provide smaller berries and concentrated flavour intensity. Medium to low vigour rootstocks were matched for suitability to clone and soil. |
APPELLATION
| Hawke's Bay, New Zealand |
SOIL PROFILE
| Moderately fertile alluvial deposits over gravelly subsoils of low water-holding capacity. |
CLIMATE
| New Zealand’s unique cool, temperate maritime influenced climate produces intensely flavoured grapes with zesty natural acidity. |