2016 Rippon Pinot Noir Tinker's Bequest
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Pinot Noir 2016 (zero added sulfur)
Vineyard: A unique parcel within Tinkers Field is a gentle, north facing slope formed by an ancient ejection cone of coarse schist gravels and is home to the oldest vines on the property. It is named after Rippon's visionary founder, Rolfe Mills (Tink to his friends), and the land that he had dreamed of farming since childhood.
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Pinot Noir Clones: 5 & 6, 2/10, 10/5, 13, Linc Rootstock: None Vine Density: 3800 vines/hectare
Dates picked: 19th April 2016
Fruit Handling:
Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s sorting table undamaged and intact. Picked and fermented separately in 2-tonned stainless steel fermenters. 96% whole cluster component.
Fermentation: Naturally occurring carbon dioxide is harvested off a Gewurztraminer ferment and used to constantly saturate the entire whole cluster fermenter. This provides the extremely healthy fruit adequate protection whilst the yeast take time to multiply. The winery’s resident yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting on the 8th day of cuvaison. The ferments reached maximum temperatures of up to 27Celsius. It then tracked more or less the same as a mature vine pinot noir, with very gentle pigeage, perhaps only once or twice every few days.
Total time of skin contact: 26 days Pre-ferment maceration: 4 days Post-ferment maceration: 14 days
Barrel management: 7.5 months in French oak barrels 33% percent new oak. The malolactic fermentation went through unaided (non-inoculated) during primary ferment. It was then run directly into bottle without filtering or fining.
Total time in barrel: 7.5 months
Bottling date: 27th January 2017
Wine analysis at bottling:
PH 3.55 ,T.A 6.3G/L , Als.13.3% , R.S <2g/l
Cases produced: 84
Release Date: Summer 2019
Nicks Comments
Time, patience, skill and perseverance have bequeathed us this opportunity: to make a truly fine wine naturally. It was a joy to work with from the outset and made it into the bottle with nothing taken away.
It's completely alive. Let the adventures begin.