Reflections on the 2021 harvest - Black Estate Winemaker Nicholas Brown

Pen Naish, Cameron Douglas MS & Nicholas Brown.

Pen Naish and Nicholas Brown are two of the hardest working people I know.

They run a wine business and restaurant, managing a team of dedicated hospitality staff.

I expect that they don’t often get time out to sit down in their own restaurant and reflect on a wine harvest that in 2021 was very rewarding. The words below are Pen’s.

Harvest reflections over lunch.

I had lunch with Nicholas in the restaurant on Monday and took the opportunity to interview him about our 2021 vintage. Words from the horse's mouth as they say. "They" also say there is no such thing as a free lunch! Here is a full and frank report. Yes, I did type while we were finishing our mains but we still had a lovely time. Thanks to our sous chef Dwayne for the delicious food on a wintery day in May, and Santi for looking after us.

PN:  Nicholas, tell me about the 2021 season. 
NB:  Over winter we did some beautiful pruning and high quality vineyard work, which was met with two very cold and unusual frost events in spring.  One was in mid-September. Dry and cold, which our vineyards got through very well with some frost fighting. The second frost in October was very humid, so the opposite to the earlier frost, which meant as soon as the air temperature got to below zero,  the vines iced up. Jack Frost is real you know.

PN: Yes, I know (sigh). 
NB: That affected Netherwood Vineyard in particular, so we directed our energy into our two vineyards that were not so frosted.   We started with bud rubbing and shoot thinning by hand, directing the vine’s growth to the most desirable bud points to maximise the vine's energy,  We had a dry early spring, then as we moved into flowering, we started to get a lot of humidity, which is not only poor conditions for flowering but created a perfect environment for powdery mildew. This meant we needed to focus on keeping our canopies open and well ventilated. Summer was mild with cool nights, and not too windy.

PN: Yay some good news! 
NB: Then in late summer, the days and nights were warm and windy which accelerated ripening and resulted in the earliest harvest recorded to date. We wondered if we would get enough pickers, but didn’t need to worry. We were excited to recruit an enthusiastic and agile picking team that allowed us to get the grapes at optimal ripeness.
PN: [True, we even had a few keen beans recruited via this email. Thank you Margaret!].

Lunch.

PN: How are the wines looking in the cellar? 
NB: So far the small amount of wine we harvested looks promising.  The whites are looking concentrated and crisp. With beautiful fresh lees to rest on through winter, they should develop lovely complexity and roundness.

PN: The reds? 
NB: Pure fruit, balanced tannin and refreshing acidity.  Very satisfying and precious.

PN: Observations from such a different harvest?
NB: Challenging from a yield perspective, but a pretty calm vintage to be honest. Relax when you can.  Some of our team had a sabbatical, or rather than travelling to the northern hemisphere this year, spent time in some of our favourite vineyards in Otago. That was nice.  We could give even more time and care to the wines with this small vintage - not many late nights - a vintage like no other for that reason.

PN: What's next Nicholas?
NB: Now we're getting into the vineyard to nurture and support our vines to help them reach full potential in the next growing season. Every season is another chance.

PN: Did you get a rest? (Asking for a friend).
NB: Yes, I have had lots of time with family - loved walking the Banks Peninsula Track!  Also, check out the Gravity Fishing Experience around Stewart Island.  I was lucky enough to join Wil, one of our team for a  truly wild and real few days on the sea. The best kai you can catch. 

PN: What music did you listen to in the cellar this vintage?  
NB:  Ross with Friends comes to mind. Deep House.  Hands in the air! 

We have 8 more tickets available for our Truffle Day Out with Kings Truffles on Saturday 26 June. This will sell out so get in quick if you wish to relish this wonderful day of fungi, local produce and aged wines.

See you soon.

Ngā mihi

Nicholas and Pen and the Black Estate team.

A picture of Nicholas in situ last week, pruning Riesling at Damsteep Vineyard. There are a team of legends pruning with him just out of shot.