Stargazer Tupelo 2025

Description

Product Description A Tasmanian white blend with fragrance, texture and lift. Stargazer Tupelo 2025 brings together Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Gewürztraminer and Riesling in an Alsace-inspired Gentil style. Each variety contributes a layer to the whole: Pinot Gris for body, Pinot Blanc for freshness, Gewürztraminer for spice and perfume, and Riesling for tension. All fruit is hand-picked, destemmed and left on skins for eight hours before pressing. Wild fermentations take place mostly in seasoned oak, with some parcels in ceramic egg. The wine rests on lees for two months before bottling, with a touch of residual sugar left to balance its bright acidity. The result is a textural yet finely structured white that captures both aromatic intensity and freshness. The Maker Stargazer pays tribute to Abel Tasman, who as an explorer and navigator, must have spent a fair amount of time gazing towards the heavens. A Dutchman under the employ of the United East India Company, Abel Tasman was the first European to sight Tasmania (on 24 November 1642) and then the South Island of New Zealand, nineteen days later on 13 December. He is a natural link for winemaker Samantha Connew, having been born and bred a South Islander, and now having fallen in love with another island, Tasmania.For Samantha Connew, the opportunity to work with pristine fruit to craft the wines she is passionate about in an environment of extraordinary beauty is really all she wanted to do as a winemaker. Sam recollects her high school Classics teacher, a Scotsman who at one point had been in the Merchant Navy, always said that when visiting museums, art galleries, and churches we should remember to look up as the best treasures can be above us. Talented winemaker and wine judge Samantha Connew took over the property in 2016 and expanded the vineyard to include additional vines: more pinot noir, some chardonnay and more riesling along with smaller quantities of gamay, pinot blanc, pinot gris and gewurztraminer. The Vineyard This is the first year that Tupelo has included a small portion of fruit from the 2021 plantings of Gris, Pinot Blanc, Riesling and Gewurztraminer at their Palisander vineyard in the Coal River Valley sub-region of Tea Tree. The remaining fruit is from other small holdings in the Coal River Valley, the Gewurztraminer from a vineyard just outside of Richmond, the Pinot Gris also from just outside Richmond, and a little bit of Riesling from Campania.Stargazer vineyards are located in the Tea Tree subregion at the northern end of the Coal River Valley, the original 1ha vineyard on Back Tea Tree Road was planted by Norm and Jan Gangell in 2004. Pretty much half and half riesling and pinot noir, the property (eleven hectares in total) is also home to an olive grove. Samantha took over in 2016 and in late 2017 expanded the vineyard to include an additional two hectares of vines: more pinot noir (four clones), some chardonnay (another four clones) and more riesling. Stage two of the expansion was planted in October 2021: more pinot noir (two clones), gamay, pinot blanc, riesling, pinot gris and gewurztraminer.Whilst still very new to the whole grape grower caper, Samantha and her new vineyard manager Guy Young are fervent believers in sustainable farming, biodiversity and regenerative agriculture. As part of this approach, they use sheep in the vineyard during winter for weed control, chickens free range throughout the year and scratch around for bugs, bees contribute their pollination magic (and honey) and since 2020 we have planted over 1000 native species on the property. Tasting Notes NOSE – Fragrant & lifted Mandarin, honeysuckle and dried peel with ginger spice, musk lolly and florals. PALATE – Glossy & textural Layered stonefruit and citrus richness with hints of spice, carried by acidity and a touch of residual sweetness. FINISH – Fresh & persistent Acid tension and subtle salinity drive a long, balanced finish. Finer Details Style –