JENNY DOBSON FLORENCE FIANO 2023

Winery notes (2023 Vintage)
"Fiano, a native Italian grape variety giving a powerful dry white wine that embodies place, variety and vintage. Bursting into song on the nose, joyous in the mouth and dancing on the finish.
 

Dedicated to Florence (1894 – 1968), my paternal grandmother. Like Fiano, she was vivacious, bold and elegant. Often considered Italy's finest white variety, Fiano dates back to antiquity and was a wine revered by the Romans.

​Grown in Hawkes Bay my Fiano has focused aromas of red apple, citrus blossom, and hazelnut coupled with a crushed slate minerality. The boldly textured palate is layered with complex flavours of pip fruit intertwined with honeysuckle, citrus, and a distinctive savoury hazelnut. Refreshing, with a lingering presence on the palate. Florence Fiano is bold and elegant. You can enjoy it while young or with bottle age.

The first Fiano vines were planted in New Zealand by Bryce Campbell in 2010 with a second planting in 2022. The soils are old volcanic soils laid down by the Taupo eruptions layered with gravels and loam from the old Ngaruroro riverbed.

I grow the grapes following organic and sustainable practices. I aim to create biodiversity in the vineyard encouraging wildflower growth, planting native and exotic trees. The water holding capacity of the pumice, which abounds in the soil, allows me to dry farm the vineyard.

Fiano is a late ripening variety and I hand pick in April . 90% of the grapes are whole bunch pressed with 10% having 24 hours skin maceration before pressing. Fermentation is slow and steady. The new wine is left on lees for several months post ferment with regular stirring to enhance the natural textural qualities of the grape variety."

92/100 David Walker Bell, WineFolio.co.nz, May 2024 (2023 Vintage)
"A white wine from the Bush Hawk vineyard in Hawke’s Bay. Fiano is a heritage grape variety hailing from Campania in south west Italy, and Sicily. Rare to find in New Zealand, this one is named after Jenny’s paternal grandmother. A pale gold in the glass, with bright aromatics of white peach, apple, grapefruit, white pepper, hazelnut and a floral lift of lemon blossom and jasmine. The palate is crisp, fresh and brimming with zesty acidity. Coupled to a distinctive phenolic fuzz, with minerality and a pithy texture, it has a youthful energy and drive. Mouth-filling and persistent, the finish is dry and balanced."