A fusion of art and science is where the magic lies, according to the team behind Spencer Hill winery’s award-winning rosé.
The wine was fermented with pinot gris grapes, which is a variety that normally produces white wines. “A short period of skin contact and a twist of pinot noir grapes give the wine its perfect pale rosy glow,” says Spencer Hill winemaker Jules Randall.
That combination saw the vintage awarded the Wineworks Trophy for the nation’s champion rosé at the National Wine Awards Aotearoa in Auckland earlier this month.
Jules reckons he knew at first taste that they were onto something special with this one.
“It was one of those wines that comes out of fermentation and just ticks all the boxes.”
As Spencer Hill owner Matt Rutherford summarises, “if you don’t have to play around with it, you know you’re probably onto something good.”
Spencer Hill, which also creates stock under the Latitude 41 wine label, has won plenty of other medals and trophies along the way, although usually it is their chardonnay that is picking up the accolades. The National Wine Awards Aotearoa is one of the country’s major honours, and the winery also won a gold medal for its 2024 Latitude 41 pinot gris.
Jules stays involved with the grape growers, working with Matt to sample grapes close to harvest to determine the perfect picking window. Working with a primary industry, every year brings a new challenge. “After 34 years, I’ve seen just about everything,” Matt says.
Jules, who has been making wine with Spencer Hill for 14 years, says that 2024 was a wonderful year nationally for wineries and vineyards – “a bit of a dream run, really”.
Spencer Hill produced about 3800 bottles of their 2024 rosé.
