Yvonne Lorkin: I'm a festival fan: watch out wallet

Giesen's vineyard's new Italian-made toy the "Crawler" has less downward pressure than a human footprint.

I'm writing this column minutes after driving back to my office from a wine tasting over in the middle of Hawke's Bay's Gimblett Gravels district.

It was so hot, the black stuff on my steering wheel was leaching into my hands, the air conditioning unit collapsed with the strain and the pool of sweat in the small of my back became so big, a primary school could have held their swimming sports in it. It was one of those days where being around a crowd was the last thing I wanted - not a normal feeling for me.

You see, one thing that's guaranteed to be etched into my headstone when I eventually kick the barrel is that I was always a great fan of festivals. Nary a month passes when I'm not hauling my family off to some sort of public celebration (usually with much eye-rolling from the kids and feeble protests from my husband). Although wine and food fests are my favourite (no surprises there), I've been known to thrill at the thought of cultural shindigs, musical mosh-pits, arts-and-crafts celebrations, all sorts of seasonal solstices, fiestas and carnival-type carry-on; and woe betide my Eftpos card if I spot a sign saying "school gala" or "church fete" - I can literally feel it having a conniption in my clutch purse.

So you'll understand why my timbers are shivering at the prospect of zooming out west of Hastings on January 24 to attend the first annual Bridge Pa Wine Festival. The Bridge Pa Triangle Wine District might contain the oldest soils on Hawke's Bay's Heretaunga Plains (the famous "red metals"), but it's also New Zealand's newest official wine region, spreading across more than 2000ha on the western side of the Heretaunga Plains.

Contained within its loose boundaries of three roads (SH50, Maraekakaho Rd and Ngatarawa Rd) which form a distinct triangle shape, the district includes vineyards belonging to some of the nation's most prestigious wine brands and this year eight wineries (even those without cellar doors) are throwing open their gates, hiring DJ's to spin tunes whilst offering wine tasting, food, music and master classes. Abbey Cellars, Alpha Domus, Ash Ridge, Hawkes Ridge, Ngatarawa, Paritua, Salvare and Sileni are the eight venues, which will be connected by "Hop On/Hop Off" buses, which is great because they're all within five minutes of each other.

Tickets are available from Eventfinda or at the cellar doors of participating wineries.

Giesen gets a groovy machine

I'm not normally one to geek out over agricultural equipment, but the new toy in Giesen's vineyard shed definitely gave me an "oooh" moment.

They've just taken possession of a "Crawler", which is designed to be the ultimate multi-tasker in their organic Clavin and Ridge vineyards. The Italian-made Geier machine (the same company which makes snow-groomers for ski fields) replaces the hulking-great 2.5 tonne tractor that they'd previously been using. Viticulture manager Mike Poff says the Crawler, weighing in at just over a tonne, and with a width of 1.1m, has less downward pressure than a human footprint. It'll be used for under-vine weeding, crop spraying and trimming and it's also the start of a "minimal compaction" approach to the company's high-density viticulture.

"The rows in these vineyards are only 1.5m wide and the bulkier tractors run right beside the grape vines which can damage the plants' roots," he says. "The surface area of the Crawler's tracks means a significantly better displacement of weight."

Better displacement of weight is something that I'm also always looking for.

"These sorts of vineyards usually produce a bottle of wine per vine. High density means that the vine is putting its entire energy into a much more focused crop. The vines are competing against each other, which decreases the vigour of the vine. This competition means that there's less fruit and the vine is smaller with a more concentrated style of fruit."

Giesen has also introduced three purpose-built Compost Spreaders from Germany to increase the use of organic matter in its vineyards.

"After each harvest, there are a massive 3500 tonnes of skins, seeds and other material that come from the fruit after pressing," Poff explains. Via these Compost Spreaders, this material will be redistributed around the vineyards, starting with Giesen's blocks in the Lower Wairau.

SIPS OF THE WEEK

Sileni Cellar Selection Hawke's Bay Pinot Gris 2014, $19

Rose-gold colour and oozing nashi and apple strudel notes on the nose and palate, this wine is fresh, tangy and textural - and is a winner with takeaway Thai.

Sileni.co.nz

Giesen The August 1888 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2012, $44

Here's what happens when you do exactly the opposite of what's expected of sauvignon blanc in Marlborough. Tiny amounts of hand-picked, whole bunches of fruit are pressed straight to barrel and fermented with wild yeasts then aged on lees to give extra complexity. This gobsmackingly good wine boasts aromas of smashed lemongrass, white peach, vanilla and elderflower, while in the mouth it has knife-edge balance, creamy complexity, intense mineral and stonefruit notes and a long, smoky finish. Glorious.

Giesen.co.nz