Rippon Vineyard
Rippon Vineyard was the dream of Rolfe and Lois Mills, pioneers of wine in Central Otago. Experimental vines were planted in 1974, but the bulk of the vineyard was planted in 1982 with Pinot Noir representing 40% of the vineyard. The first commercial vintage was produced in 1988. Winemaker Nick Mills, son of Rolfe and Lois returned to the property in 2002 after four years of work, study and life in Burgundy. He learned his “wine growing” skills at Domaine Jean-Jacques Confuron, Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, Domaine Albert Mann – as well as many others. Nick and his wife Jo, also a well respected winemaker in her own right, work with other members of the Mills family to make Rippon Vineyard & Winery a unique and successful family operation.
The family’s principle goal is to create vins de terroir; wines that are an accurate reflection of their surroundings. It is the micro-life in their soils which – in their ability to metabolize minerals into a form that vines can assimilate – are the link in between plants and the earth. This simple biology is the essential framework in producing a wine which is true to its soil and site. With this understanding comes an absolute respect for the land and life therein and it is for this reason that Rippon is run biodynamically.
Biodynamic
Established: 1982
Acreage: 30
Winemaker: Nick Mills
Yearly Production: 7,000 cases
Click here to learn more about Biodynamic wine.
Rippon Vineyard
Rippon Vineyard In Summer
Rippon Vineyard
Rippon Vineyard Varietals
Osteiner
Pinot Noir
“Tinker’s Field” Pinot Noir
“Emma’s Block” Pinot Noir
Riesling
Rippon Vineyard (Central Otago) - Biodynamic
- 2006 Pinot Noir
95 points Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate April 2008
91 points Steve Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sept/Oct 2008 - 2007 Pinot Noir
92 points Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate. October 2009
#1 New Zealand Pinot Noir The New York Times, February 2010
94 points, “100 Best Wines of the Year”, Wine and Spirits Nov 2010 - 2008 Pinot Noir “Mature Vines”
91 points Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate. October 2010
94 points Wine & Spirits Magazine, Feb. 2011
93 points The Wine Spectator, June 2011 - 2008 Pinot Noir “Emma’s Block”
93 points Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate. October 2010 - 2008 Pinot Noir “Tinker’s Field”
93 points Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate. October 2010
94 points Wine and Spirits Magazine February 2011 - 2009 Riesling
90+ points Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate October 2010
Rippon Vineyard Tasting Notes
Rippon 2001 Pinot Noir Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Terminal Moraine, Schist based glacial deposits
Planted: 1992
Vine Density: 3800/hectare
Dates picked: April 23-24, 2008
Fruit Condition: Healthy, moderately yielding loose clusters.
Fruit Handling: Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s sorting table intact. It is then pressed over 4 hours and run, by gravity, into a settling tank. 12 hours of settling is passed after which the juice is racked, retaining fine lees, into tank.
Total time on primary lees: 34 days
Total Production: 320 cases
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 2.75, TA 9.45 g/l, Alcohol 11.1%, RS 11 g/l
Winemaker’s Notes: The long 2008 season saw the Osteiner pull out all the stops after a year off last year and, following in the steps of the 2006 vintage, the bottled result is one of the finest Osteiners we have produced to date. Enjoy over a long, summer lunch.
Rippon 2007 Pinot Noir Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Ancient ejection cone of Schist gravels
Pinot Noir Clones: 5 & 6, 2/10, 10/5, 13, Linc
Planted: 1986-1991
Vine Density: 3800/hectare
Dates picked: April 18th-May 5th, 2007
Fruit Handling: Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s sorting table undamaged and intact. This wine represents many small parcels of different clones, vine ages and micro-sites within a single Rippon Vineyard. They were picked and fermented separately in 10, 2-ton stainless-steel fermenters. 15% whole cluster component.
Fermentation: Each parcel is fermented and matured apart before blending. The winery’s resident yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting on the 3rd-9th day of cuvaison. The ferments reached maximum temperatures of 29-34° Celsius and reached dryness at days 9-13.
Total time of skin contact: 13-28 days, depending on parcel
Barrel management: 15 months of new (30%) to 4-year-old French oak barrels. The malolactic fermentation went through unaided (non-inoculated) in springtime; it was then racked back into barrel and allowed a second winter in barrel before being run directly into bottle without filtering or fining.
Bottling date: August 2008
Release date: August 2009
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 3.40, TA 8.5 g/l, Alcohol 12.9%, RS <2g/l, 220 32mg/L
Winemaker’s Notes: Pinot Noir, perhaps more than any other red variety (although Riesling looks it firmly in the eye) acts as a reflection, a medium which translates climate, soils and human activity with a direct and, hopefully, unmediated voice. At Rippon, this voice, this liquid informant, is issued from the oldest vines in the region, un-irrigated and all on their own roots. The wine is fermented by indigenous yeasts, both in primary and malolactic fermentation, it receives no supplementary nutrients or vitamins, it is aged for 15 months (two winters) in barrel and is run into bottle without fining or filtering.
Cellaring potential: 10 years +, decanting recommended
Rippon 2008 Pinot Noir Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Ancient ejection cone of Schist gravels
Pinot Noir Clones: 5 & 6, 2/10, 10/5, 13, Linc
Planted: 1986-1991
Vine Density: 3800/hectare
Dates picked: April 18th-May 5th, 2008
Fruit Handling: Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s sorting table undamaged and intact. This wine represents many small parcels of different clones, vine ages and micro-sites within a single Rippon Vineyard. They were picked and fermented separately in 10, 2-ton stainless-steel fermenters. 15% whole cluster component.
Fermentation: Each parcel is fermented and matured apart before blending. The winery’s resident yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting on the 3rd-9th day of cuvaison. The ferments reached maximum temperatures of 29-34° Celsius and reached dryness at days 9-13.
Total time of skin contact: 13-28 days, depending on parcel
Barrel management: 15 months of new (30%) to 4-year-old French oak barrels. The malolactic fermentation went through unaided (non-inoculated) in springtime; it was then racked back into barrel and allowed a second winter in barrel before being run directly into bottle without filtering or fining.
Bottling date: August 2009
Release date: April 2010
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 3.40, TA 8.5 g/l, Alcohol 12.9%, RS <2g/l, 220 32mg/L
Winemaker’s Notes: Pinot Noir, perhaps more than any other red variety acts as a reflection, a medium which translates climate, soils and human activity with a direct and, hopefully, unmediated voice. At Rippon, this voice, this liquid informant, is issued from the oldest vines in the region, un-irrigated and all on their own roots. The wine is fermented by indigenous yeasts, both in primary and malolactic fermentation, it receives no supplementary nutrients or vitamins, it is aged for 15 months (two winters) in barrel and is run into bottle without fining or filtering.
Cellaring potential: 10 years +, decanting recommended
Rippon 2008 “Tinker’s Field” Pinot Noir Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago. A unique parcel within Rippon, Tinker’s Field is a gentle, north facing slope formed by an ancient ejection cone of course schist gravels and is home to the oldest vines on the property. It is named after Rippon’s visionary founder, Rolfe Mills (Tink to his friends), and the land that he had dreamed of farming since childhood.
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Ancient ejection cone of Schist gravels
Pinot Noir Clones: 5 & 6,2/10,13, Linc
Vine Density: 3800/hectare
Dates picked: April 9th-27th, 2008
Fruit Handling:Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s
sorting table undamaged and intact. They were picked and fermented separately in 10, 2-ton stainlesssteel
fermenters. 40% whole cluster component.
Fermentation: Each parcel is fermented and matured apart before blending. The winery’s resident
yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting on the 6th-9th day of cuvaison. The ferments
reached maximum temperatures of 29-32° Celsius.
Total time of skin contact: 15-28 days, depending on parcel
Barrel management:10 months of new (35%) to 4-year-old French oak barrels. The malolactic
fermentation went through unaided (non-inoculated) in springtime; it was then racked back into barrel
and allowed a second winter in barrel before being run directly into bottle without filtering or fining.
Bottling date: October 7th, 2009
Release date: April 2010
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 3.60, TA 8.5 g/l, Alcohol 13%, RS <2g/l
Winemaker’s Notes:Full yielding, beautiful summer, and a great team! An outstanding vintage! Over
the many years of watching and listening to this parcel, consistent markers showed themselves time and
again in the finished wine. This is the first year it has been released under its own label. Across vintages
Tinker’s Field remains defined by its texture: detailed, compressed power, precise, unforced masculinity.
Cellaring potential: 10 years +, decanting recommended
Rippon 2008 "Emma’s Block" Pinot Noir Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago. A unique parcel within Rippon, Emma’s Block faces eastward on the lakefront where ancient clay reefs run laterally through fine schist gravels. Emma’s Block is named after the great-great-great grandmother of the current generation of the Mills family, through whom the name entered into the family.
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Ancient ejection cone of Schist gravels
Pinot Noir Clones: 5 & 6,13, Linc
Vine Density: 3333 vines/hectare
Dates picked: April 11th, 16th & 28th 2008
Fruit Handling:Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s
sorting table undamaged and intact. They were picked and fermented separately in 3, 2-ton stainlesssteel
fermenters. 23% whole cluster component.
Fermentation: Each parcel is fermented and matured apart before blending. The winery’s resident
yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting on the 6th-9th day of cuvaison. The ferments
reached maximum temperatures of 29-32° Celsius.
Total time of skin contact: 15-28 days, depending on parcel
Barrel management:10 months of new (22%) to 4-year-old French oak barrels. The malolactic
fermentation went through unaided (non-inoculated) in springtime; it was then racked back into barrel
and allowed a second winter in barrel before being run directly into bottle without filtering or fining.
Bottling date: October 8th, 2009
Release date: April 2010
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 3.60, TA 8.7 g/l, Alcohol 13.4%, RS <2g/l
Winemaker’s Notes: Full yielding, beautiful summer, and a great team! An outstanding vintage! Over
the many years of watching and listening to this parcel, consistent markers showed themselves time and
again in the finished wine. This is the first year it has been released under its own label. Across vintages
Emma’s Block remains defined by its texture: detailed, sleek, fine, glide, animated femininity.
Cellaring potential: 10 years +, decanting recommended
Rippon 2010 Riesling Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Ancient ejection cone of Schist gravels
Planted: 1987-1991
Vine Density: 3800/hectare
Dates picked: April 22nd- May 2nd, 2010
Fruit Condition: Extremely healthy, 0% botrytis
Fruit Handling: Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s sorting table intact. It is then whole bunch pressed over 4 hours and run, by gravity, into a settling tank. 12 hours of settling is passed after which the juice is racked, retaining fine lees, into a horizontal fermentation tank (stainless-steel foudre).
Fermentation: The winery’s resident yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting the juice on day 7 of cuvaison and finished around day 30.
Total time on primary lees: 9 weeks
Bottling Date: October 19, 2010
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 2.81, TA 8.8 g/l, Alcohol 12.2%, RS 13.5 g/l
Cellaring potential: 8+ years
Case Production: 609 cases
Rippon 2009 Riesling Tasting Notes
Vineyard: Rippon, Lake Wanaka, Central Otago
Winemakers: Nick Mills & Team
Soils: Ancient ejection cone of Schist gravels
Planted: 1987-1991
Vine Density: 3800/hectare
Dates picked: May 1&2, 2008
Fruit Condition: Extremely healthy, 0% botrytis
Fruit Handling: Picked by hand into small, 10kg cases allowing the fruit to arrive at the winery’s sorting table intact. It is then whole bunch pressed over 4 hours and run, by gravity, into a settling tank. 12 hours of settling is passed after which the juice is racked, retaining fine lees, into a horizontal fermentation tank (stainless-steel foudre).
Fermentation: The winery’s resident yeast population (non-inoculated) started fermenting the juice on day 7 of cuvaison and finished around day 30.
Total time on primary lees: 10 weeks
Bottling Date: September 26, 2008
Wine analysis at bottling: pH 2.77, TA 9 g/l, Alcohol 12.1%, RS 18 g/l
Cellaring potential: 10 years +
Case Production: 256 cases
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