THE KINGS SERIES PINOT NOIR 2023

TASTING NOTE

Rich and inviting aromas of black doris plum and cassis are laced with lifted florals and a dash of mocha. The elegant palate holds a fine-grained tannin structure which intertwines with notes of forest berries. The wine finishes intensely with a lingering supple midpalate that harmonises with the juicy Marlborough
acidity.

FOOD MATCH

Highly versatile, this wine matches well to gamey meats, mushrooms as well as rich fish such as tuna or trout. We recommend enjoying The Kings Series Pinot Noir with a herb crusted rack of lamb nestled in creamy mashed potato with a port jus.

CELLARING POTENTIAL

Up to 10 years.

ORIGIN

Sourced from selected Pinot Noir vineyards in the Southern Valleys of Marlborough.

VARIETY

100% Pinot Noir.

WINEMAKING

Selected clones were hand harvested from clay-based vineyards in the Southern Valleys. The fruit was chilled and mostly destemmed into small fermenters for a week-long cold soak helping deepen the colour. A portion was kept as whole bunches to provide structure and complexity. Fermentation occurred over another week with strains of yeast isolated from Burgundian vineyards. The wines were then pressed to French oak puncheons (40% new) to mature for 11 months in which time they underwent Malolactic fermentation.

ANALYSIS

• Alcohol - 13.5%
• pH - 3.74
• T.A - 5.46g/L
• Residual sugar - <0.3g/L
• Vegan Certified

VINTAGE

Vintage 2025 will be remembered as one of Marlborough’s larger harvests due to near optimal flowering and fruit set conditions during the final months of 2024.

The 2025 growing season began with budburst under warm, sunny weather, allowing vines to make full use of the ample soil moisture retained from winter and the majority of spring was fortunately frost free.

Throughout the early part of the season, Marlborough experienced warm, sunny, and relatively dry conditions, despite a few intense rain events in late October and again mid to late December. The key summer ripening period continued this pattern of favourable weather—warm, sunny, and dry—even though January ranked among the coolest since 2000.

Harvest commenced under sunny skies in March at Leefield Station, with early season Pinot Noir Rosé and the small-berried clones of Pinot Gris. The season concluded a month later with the hand harvest of Syrah.

Among the twisted vines of owner Brent Marris’ ancestry was William de Marisco, said to be one of the illegitimate sons of King Henry the First. In the twelfth and thirteenth century, the de Mariscos' inhabited Lundy island off the south-west coast of England, engaged in a tempestuous relationship with the monarchy of the time. At times receiving favour, and at others displeasure, the de Mariscos’ acts of piracy and treason defined their place in history. Celebrating his scandalous family history, Brent Marris presents The Kings Series.