WELCOME TO KAIMIRA WINES
In this website we aim to share with you some insights into the way we operate and the wines we make. We produce two styles of wine: Kaimira Estate and Brightside. Both are made by us from grapes grown locally in vineyards we either own or manage.
LATEST NEWS
The Vineyards
The temperature has been below average for most of the winter and early spring, but now we are finally seeing the fine Nelson weather shaping up again. We have had some warm sunny days and the plants are putting out good growth. Jobs like bud rubbing and shoot thinning are already over and we are well into wire lifting to support the new vines.The new season brings some major changes to the vineyard.
As a natural progression from our certification under the Sustainable Winegrowing and carboNZero programmes, we are now in organic conversion. This brings along some new challenges concerning weed, pest and disease management. The change-over to full organic certification takes three years and we are all very excited working towards growing and making our first organic certified wines in 2013.
It's Bubbles, Darling
We are pleased to announce the arrival of "June", our very first Méthode Traditionelle, made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes harvested in 2007.
This crémant style wine is dedicated to June Hamilton, wife of Ian Miller with whom she owns and runs Kaimira Estate. This fizzy addition to our range deserved some special attention and we have given this wine a brand new "outfit".
This 23% Pinot Noir/77% Chardonnay wine was bottle fermented and then allowed to age on yeast lees for 24 months; thus giving additional flavour, richness and complexity.
The dry-style wine was disgorged late November and will be available before Christmas in discerning retail outlets.
New Look
2009 marks the tenth vintage of our Kaimira Estate wine range. To celebrate a decade of these premium wines, we have given the label a facelift. Our first 2009 release will be the Brightwater Sauvignon Blanc, which will be available by the end of December. Successive vintages of this wine have won medals and the latest release should maintain that tradition so do come and try it at our tasting room over summer.
Our 2007 Brightwater Chardonnay has also recently been released. This lush wine is made from 100% estate grown Mendoza, light lemon gold in colour, fresh citrus, stonefruit and toasty oak on the nose. The palate is vibrant and juicy with tangelo, golden peach and vanilla spice. The French oak lends toasty appeal while lees give a creamy oatmeal richness and texture. The wine finishes with caramel and tropical hints of banana and dried fig.
Exhibitions
We have some great local art exhibitions lined up at our tasting room again this year. In December, Margaret Johnston is showing "The Hole Story", an investigation into the concept of "the hole" or "the whole", using stone sculptures and paintings to express her findings.
We are pleased to support this year's NMIT art graduates and a selection of their work will be displayed in January.
Paintings by Helen Hazeldine feature in our gallery the following month. Our season concludes with work by Ann Nighy.
A Short History of Méthode Champenoise by Sally Albrecht, our winemaker
It may surprise many to learn that in the late 1600's the Champagne region was desperately competing with Burgundy to make fine red wine. The much cooler climate meant this was a battle Champagne could never win, and it was a Benedictine monk Dom Perignon who came up with the novel product idea of white wine from red grapes. He perfected this art by way of meticulous viticulture and very gentle handling of the grapes. An unforeseen problem associated with the cooler climate in Champagne was that often the fermentation process would be incomplete, with some residual sugar left in the wine. The wines were shipped to England in barrels and bottled, then as the weather warmed up in the spring, that sugar would begin to ferment again releasing carbon dioxide and causing a build up of pressure under the cork, and bubbly wine. The French thought of these wines as faulty and Dom Perignon tried hard to ensure the ferments were complete prior to shipping. Luckily for them, the English aristocracy and later the Russians took rather a fancy to the sparkling version, so the French winemakers embraced the "fault" and the signature wine of Champagne was born. Improvements to consistency were made over time with Veuve Cliquot developing the riddling process that allows complete removal of the yeast sediment from the bottle. Once the yeast is out, the bottles can be topped up with liquor of any sweetness without danger of re-ferment, thus allowing the final sweetness of the wine to be tailored to various tastes. This is the final step in what is known today as Méthode Champenoise.
Today sees wine regions all over the world trying their hand at this remarkable wine though none can be called Champagne but those from the region itself, probably one of the most vehemently protected brands on the planet. New Zealand has shown itself able to compete at the highest level in the world of wine and Méthode Champenoise is no exception. These are the wines of celebration, joy and festivity (as well as being delicious with sushi!) - when you think of the thousands of ships launched and the billions of celebrations toasted with this magical wine, it is truly a phenomenon.
If you are a member of our cellar door (you can join at the bottom of the page), you can expect a great offer on these wines in your mailbox.
CELLAR CLUB
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