Alpha Zeta Garganega 2023

Alpha Zeta Garganega

Alpha Zeta Garganega has honeyed aromas of peach and almond lead into an enticingly crisp yet ripe wine, full of vibrant flavours and finishing with a zesty twist.

Alpha Zeta Garganega is perfect on its own or with light pasta dishes, salads or fish.

Alpha Zeta Garganega is made from 100% Garganega (the principal grape of Soave), with a touch of oak.

Relatively low fermentation temperatures help preserve the fresh fruit character of the grapes. 20% was fermented in large format oak.

The wine was held in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks until bottling. Clear, pale straw in colour with fresh, delicate perfumes of stoned fruit, honeysuckle and almond blossom.

On the palate, it is fresh but has surprising depth and a lovely peachy fruit character. A lively, lemonyzest finish offsets the ripe fruit on the palate.

The Alpha Zeta wines go from strength to strength. Leading New Zealand winemaker Matt Thomson is now working with two co-operatives whose vineyards cover about 1,900 hectares in the hills northeast of Verona. Italian WInes

With this great range of vineyards and fruit to choose from, Matt is now able to demonstrate even better the potential inherent in Veronese viticulture.

VINEYARDS
Garganega is the principal grape of Soave. The vineyards are situated in the hills outside Verona in the Valpantena Valley.

Cool currents blow down the valley from the foothills of the Dolomites, which helps to moderate the climate, enabling the grapes to ripen slowly.

This helps the grapes to retain their aromatic compounds and acidity. The soil is poor and chalky so the vines are put under stress helping to produce superior quality fruit.

VINIFICATION
The grapes were hand harvested, destemmed, crushed and chilled on the way to the press with no sulphur addition. The juice was naturally settled and after racking, cultured yeasts were added to initiate fermentation, which took place at 12-14°C.

These relatively low fermentation temperatures help preserve the fresh fruit character of the grapes.

20% of the must was fermented in large format oak to add another layer of complexity.

The wine was then held in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks until bottling.

Alpha Zeta Garganega - Hay Wines