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Buy OnlineWinery notes (2024 Vintage)
"Halcyon Days wines are Biogro organic certified, handpicked and naturally fermented, with no additions. We use time-honoured methods to create striking wines that are a dynamic expression of Halcyon’s place: Heretaunga, Hawke’s Bay.
Alcyone (Olly pronounces it with a hard “c”, as in Al-kai-oh-nee, while Amy pronounces it “Al-see-own” – take your pick!) is one of the nymphs, or pleiades, in Greek mythology (from which we get the name of the kingfisher, Halcyon). It is also the brightest of the stars in the Pleiades, or Matariki.
Our 2024 Alcyone is bursting with flavour and freshness. Naturally lower in alcohol but with plenty of substance, it's a vibrant juicy expression of Sangiovese with a fine tannin structure and a moreish finish.
We made this wine to showcase an expression of a lighter red wine with no oak. We wanted to show how the fruit tannin provides a fine structure, in balance with the fleshy fruit and bright acid. Sangiovese is the ideal grape for this, bringing elegance and energy like no other red – and that's why we love it!
All grapes for Alcyone come from the beautiful, certified organic, Osawa vineyard in the Mangatahi subregion. Mangatahi is situated on the southern alluvial river terraces of the Ngaruroro Moko tū-ā-raro-ki-Rangatira Awa. With a higher elevation than the Heretaunga plains, it is slightly cooler, with more influence from the Kaweka and Ruahine pae maunga to the west. The soils are sandy loam over alluvial gravels with a ferrous content (referred to as “red metals” in Aotearoa).
Sangiovese is one of our favourite grape varieties but is rare in Aotearoa. We are lucky to have a contract for the Sangiovese block at Osawa vineyard. This was planted at Osawa in 2006, and is composed entirely of clone SG 12T on Schwarzman rootstock. It is well-suited to this climate and site, and creates energetic wines with a lovely fruit expression and a light tannic edge.
The grapes were handpicked and then tipped, whole-bunch, into an open fermenter. The wine fermented spontaneously with ambient yeasts on skins and with very gentle extraction over 10 days. It was pressed and underwent malolactic fermentation and aging in the tank. Like all our wines, Alcyone was made with no additions, fining or filtration."
93/100 Stephen Wong MW, The Real Review, July 2025 (2024 Vintage)
"100% organic sangiovese from the Osawa Vineyard, Alcyone is named after one of the nymphs or Pleiades. It is also the brightest star of Matariki (the Pleiades). It is lighter in alcohol but easily the most ‘red’ and ‘serious’ of the wines made by Halcyon Days so far. The savoury style and acidity makes it very versatile with food.
Vivid purple. Crunchy nose of tobacco and blackcurrant leaf, black cherry and red plum. A warm layer of smoke and earth with charcuterie notes underneath. Quite expressive with dusty, dark fruit, ripe herb and also a fresh piquant twist. The mid-weight palate has vibrant acidity and tart cherry flavours trimmed in smoke and dried leaves. Fine, chewy tannins add a velvet texture around the concentrated core, culminating in a satisfying crunch on the finish as perfumed red fruit, passionfruit and pomegranate rise to meet it. Right at the end, there is a suggestion of savoury, biscuity lees which needs time to integrate fully. A low-intervention wine with a more classical structure which will sing with food."
