http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.grasshopperrock.co.nz en-us Mon, 24 Dec 2018 16:30:36 +1300 Rocketspark http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/35877/2019-vintage/ The start of the 2019 vintage season will be remembered for the unusually high rainfall and the big freeze of 13 October. The average total rainfall in Alexandra for Sep to Nov is 94 mm and this year we have received 222 mm. The frost on 13 October was the worst October frost in at least 15 years but did not cause widespread damage.... Fri, 14 Dec 2018 15:28:58 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post35877 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/30049/Awards-and-reviews-2016-Grasshopper-Rock/ Competition Awards GOLD Medal   96/100 Decanter Asia Wine Awards 2018TOP100 & BLUE GOLD Medal - Sydney International Wine Competition Decanter Asia Wine Awards 2018 – GOLD Medal & 96/100An intensely juicy fruit core of black cherry and plum with lifted exotic spice and an earthy undertone. Velvety tannins and vibrant acidity with a mineral soy finish. Lengthy and moreish. Bob Campbell MW – The Real Review  95/100Delicately-scented pinot noir with purity and power. It's a good ... Wed, 28 Nov 2018 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post30049 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/35052/Climate-change/ Since we established Grasshopper Rock in 2003, I have flown many times between Auckland and Queenstown. I always sit in a window seat to make the most of the high-altitude views of this beautiful country. The flight path is usually just west of Aoraki/Mt Cook and when the weather is clear the views are spectacular. In recent years I have been shocked to see how far and fast the Franz Josef Glacier has retreated and some years it seems every time I fly over it has retreated further.... Fri, 23 Nov 2018 14:22:20 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post35052 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/31657/Our-vines-are-15-years-old-this-year-here-is-your-feedback/ Grasshopper Rock's vines are now 15 years old and we have good reason to celebrate. The vines have achieved a stage of maturity where the roots have fully colonized the available space and the trunks are now thick and strong with greater resilience, delivering richness and complexity of flavour and character. We have perhaps not yet seen the greatest wines from this vineyard. To mark the 15 years  we invited our customers to help celebrate with some feedback. We wer... Fri, 17 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post31657 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/24149/2018-vintage/ Summary.  An interesting and very successful season. 2017/18 was our most extreme season yet. Serious frosts in the weeks before budburst followed by unprecedented heat mid-season and finishing with a -5° C frost in mid-April. Not every year thanks! One of the hottest Central Otago summers on record. The heat, early flowering and ripening and rain in February created more challenges than normal. Despite the challenges the fruit was picked in excellent condition with full flavour developme... Mon, 19 Feb 2018 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post24149 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/24232/2006-2016-tasting-by-Raymond-Chan/ A vertical tasting of back vintages has provided an interesting and important insight into how well Grasshopper Rock Pinot Noir ages.  In November 2017, Raymond Chan and his partner, Sue Davies, visited Grasshopper Rock with . We drove from Queenstown and had time for a good catch up before having look around the vineyard and then tasting through all vintages of Grasshopper Rock since the first in 2006. Raymond had  visited four years earlier so this visit provided the opportunity to r... Mon, 22 Jan 2018 16:32:58 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post24232 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/24171/Pinot-Celebration-2018/ The Central Otago Pinot Noir Celebration is the most anticipated event on the wine calendar and each year the event goes from strength to strength. The Celebration is held in late January every year with a break every fourth year for the national pinot event. International interest in the Celebration continues to grow due to the consistently excellent Pinot Noir being produced and the appealing format of the event. Wine quality is only getting better as the vines age and as winegrowers become mo... Sat, 20 Jan 2018 10:25:01 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post24171 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/21590/2014-Block-6-Grasshopper-Rock-Pinot-Noir/ This wine comes from a special part of our Earnscleugh Vineyard. With vines now over ten years old the grapes in this part of the vineyard consistently show a distinctive character which we decided to capture in 2014. The soils here are the lightest in the vineyard being sandy silty loams over sandy gravels. Pedogenic lime is common in parts. The vines are planted at high density (6,000 vines/ha). The grapes in block 6 are always some of the last to be picked in the vineyard. Harvest 22 April 20... Sun, 01 Oct 2017 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post21590 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/16860/Awards-and-reviews-2015-Grasshopper-Rock/ Reviews Bob Campbell MW - 95/100Aromatic with juicy cherry, plum, mineral and spice flavours. A backbone of fine, ripe tannins perfectly supports subtle fruit. Elegant, supple wine with cellaring potential. Aug 2017  The Wine Advocate #228 –Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW 90+/100 Medium garnet-purple in color, the 2015 Earnscleugh Vineyard Pinot Noir gives fragrant notes of crushed red and black cherries, red currants and wild thyme with a hint of violets. Medium-bodied, it has a great core of ex... Mon, 14 Aug 2017 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post16860 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/post/12665/2017-vintage/ 2017 was the coolest vintage for at least 15 years. The unusually warm September was followed by a good October and then a period of below average temperatures through until late February. Fortunately flowering was good but the cooler weather during berry development meant bunch sizes were below average. 90 gram average bunch weight which is the lowest since 2007 and 2010 vintages. Picking started on 8 April which was surprisingly early. 2017 season seems to have favoured Alexandra which ripene... Wed, 03 May 2017 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.grasshopperrock.co.nz/blog/#post12665