Grüner Veltliner “McKee Vineyard” Marlborough 2018 – Tinpot Hut

To produce the Grüner Veltliner “McKee Vineyard” Marlborough Tinpot Hut a careful vineyard management during the growing season ensured the grapes were kept in balance to allow even and optimal ripening. Once the flavours of the grapes reached their peak, whole bunches were hand picked to minimise phenolics from the skins. Precise press-cuts ensured that only the less phenolic free-run juice was used in the finished wine. After settling, the juice was fermented in stainless steel tanks at cool temperatures to retain fruit character and freshness.

Winemakers Matt Thomson and Fiona Turner were looking for a cool climate variety with striking aromatic qualities supported by firm acid structure to add to the Tinpot Hut range. They soon became convinced of the potential for Grüner Veltliner in Marlborough and convinced two local growers to plant a few rows. The grapes for this single vineyard wine were grown by the McKee family in the Blind River sub-region of the Awatere Valley.

Tinpot Hut wines are made primarily from fruit grown on winemaker Fiona Turner’s vineyard in Blind River. Fiona, who has worked with Matt Thomson for a number of years, supplements her own grapes with fruit from other growers in Marlborough and Hawkes Bay. The tinpot hut that gave its name to Fiona’s wines is an old mustering hut in the remote hills between the Wairau and Awatere Valleys. The huts were used as a base for musterers as they rounded up the sheep that had been in the hills from spring to autumn. The name links Marlborough’s past as a sheep farming centre with its current state as one of the world’s most dynamic wine regions.