Astrolabe Marlborough
Rosé
2021
Like the Marlborough Pinot Gris, this is an Awatere Valley based wine. This wine is 59% from the mid-south Awatere Valley, 28% from the lower Dashwood, on the north side, and the remainder from Kēkerengū. We have used 55% pinot noir and 45% pinot gris. The Marlborough Rosé was pressed off its skins immediately on arrvival to the winery. This year, we minimised skin contact, because there was good colour in the fruit, and we didn’t want it to be too dark. I am attracted to that pretty pale colour spectrum and don’t want it to be big and dark. This is a dry wine with less than one gram per litre of sugar. I'm aiming for a stylish, fresh and dry-style rosé.
Simon Waghorn — Winemaker
TASTING NOTES
COLOUR/APPEARANCE
Pale peach blush.
AROMA/BOUQUET
Apricot, peach, watermelon and notes of orange blossom and poached pear.
PALATE
Fresh and dry wine with bright red apple, pink peppercorn, nougat and rose petal.
AGING POTENTIAL
Best enjoyed when young and fresh but has the potential to age gracefully.
FOOD PAIRING
Excellent as an aperitif or with prosciutto wraped melon, buttermilk-fried cauliflower, and delicate fish with sea salt.
ROSÉ SERVING TEMPERATURE
Lightly chilled.
2021 Vintage
93 POINTS
“An enticingly fresh and ripe bouquet of strawberry and red cherry, red apple and roses. Fragrant, youthful and lifted with a cold peach tea scent. On the palate - fruity, refreshingly crisp and just dry. Flavours of peach and rose tea, tropical fruits and light red berries. Balanced, well made and ready. Well suited to by the glass drinking or with first courses off an ala carte menu, even cheese. Best drinking upon purchase and through 2023.” JUL 21
-
Bob Campbell, Master of Wine
The Real Review © The Real Review
91 POINTS
“An enticingly fresh and ripe bouquet of strawberry and red cherry, red apple and roses. Fragrant, youthful and lifted with a cold peach tea scent. On the palate - fruity, refreshingly crisp and just dry. Flavours of peach and rose tea, tropical fruits and light red berries. Balanced, well made and ready. Well suited to by the glass drinking or with first courses off an ala carte menu, even cheese. Best drinking upon purchase and through 2023.” JUL 21
-
Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier
camdouglasms.com
4.5 STARS
"Already delicious, the 2021 vintage (4.5*) is a blend of Pinot Noir (55 per cent) and Pinot Gris (45 per cent), grown in the Awatere Valley (87 per cent) and at Kekerengu (13 per cent). Pale pink, it is mouthfilling, with vibrant strawberry, peach and spice flavours, showing excellent delicacy and depth, and a smooth, fully dry finish." 2022 Edition
-
Michael Cooper
New Zealand Wines: Michael Cooper's Buyer's Guide
5 STARS
"I am a sucker for a pretty label, and Astrolabe have some of the prettiest. This wine is a little ray of sunshine through rose tinted glasses. Aromas and flavours of strawberries and cream, raspberries and watermelon, and freshly picked flowers. A bold palate bursting with sweet citrus and apple, bright acidity and a long, clean finish." OCT 21
-
Angie Atkinson
The Wine Writer