PL Award 1: SILVER - DWWA 2016 PL Award 2: SILVER - SWA 2016 Country: New Zealand  Region: Marlborough  Vintage: 2013 Varietal: Riesling  Category: White Wine  Color: White Producer: Blank Canvas "Matt Thomson is a busy winemaker. He has worked over forty vintages in numerous wine regions around the world, and has worked with David Gleave since 1994. He is involved with many of the wines in our portfolio, primarily as a consultant. ""Now is the time to launch my own wines,"" he says. ""Blank Canvas represents my story as a winemaker. It is an endeavour that is entirely my own expression of winemaking, is from my own funding, and is exclusively my risk."" The 'Blank Canvas' is the vineyard and the variety, the winery the brush and palette (no pun intended) at the winemaker's disposal, all the while defined by the scientific grounding Matt laid at university and has built upon over the past 23 years. His aim is to break some rules with the Blank Canvas wines, but in order to break the rules, he feels, you need to know them. This is what sets the Blank Canvas wines apart.The fruit for the Grüner Veltliner comes from a single vineyard in the Rapaura sub-region. Free run juice was fermented primarily in stainless steel, with 25% of the blend going to half new and half one year old French oak puncheons (600 litre, to ensure less oak uptake), where the wine remained for eight months. The oak gives depth and texture to the wine, while the single vineyard and the careful handling gives the wine a lovely aromatic intensity. Matt is a firm believer in Marlborough's ability to produce some of New Zealand's best Pinot Noir. This wine is also from a single vineyard, planted by Matt in 2001 on the low vigour clay soils of the Waihopai valley. The wine was fermented with wild yeasts and 50% whole bunch was used. It has lovely restraint and a stunning varietal purity, all held together on the palate by firm yet fine tannins. The fruit for the Syrah comes from a single vineyard on the Gimblett Gravels. The Syrah was co-fermented with 7.5% of Grüner Veltliner skins (""I preferred the white pepper character of the Grüner to the riper Viognier fruit,"" explains Matt) to give a wine with stunning yet restrained aromatics. As with the best Côte-Rotie, Matt used a higher percentage of whole bunch (60%) to enhance the spiced fruit character of the Syrah." Product Features: Sustainable Winemaker: Matt Thomson Vineyards: The fruit came from a single vineyard in the Rapaura subregion belonging to grower and long-term friend Malcolm Adams. Berekah Estate has two hectares of Gruner Veltliner planted with a mixture of the two clones available in New Zealand. It was at Matt’s suggestion that Malcolm took the plunge to plant the new-fangled variety and with now four vintages under its belt it is performing very well on the free-draining, young alluvial soils. The vines are VSP trained and cane-pruned. Vinification: The fruit was harvested by machine at night early on in the Marlborough harvest. Quick transport to the winery saw the grapes being de-stemmed, crushed and pressed in a gentle pneumatic press to avoid skin-contact and the extraction of harsh phenolics. Only free-run juice went to stainless steel tank to settle and then ferment at cool temperatures. The fermentation was arrested when the wine had an ideal balance of acid and residual sugar. Tasting Notes: Drawing inspiration from the great Rieslings of Germany, particularly the Mosel valley, this wine features bright, balanced acidity that whets the appetite. It brims with flavours of old-fashioned lemonade, lime and honeysuckle and is completed by a zesty, satisfyingly long finish. There is a flush of sweetness on the front palate, but its acidity ensures it finishes dry. Food Suggestion: Its low alcohol level means it is an excellent low-calorie wine option, and a perfect choice to accompany lunch or as a pre-dinner enrichment. This wine is versatile with food and will pair well with savoury lamb, venison and game dishes, as well as fish dishes such as grilled salmon or tuna. A quintessential match for a vegetarian option is grilled field mushrooms. Closure: Stelvin  ABV:9%  Acidity [g/l]: 8.8 Classification: VQA