"Deep garnet with purple hues in colour, our Pinot Noir has fragrant aromas of violets, dark cherry, blackcurrant and spices with a nice oak char. The palate is rich and concentrated with plum, cherry, dark chocolate and blackberry. A full bodied wine with firm acidity and silky fine tannins, leading to a long ripe berry finish."
Domain Road Vineyard is a privately owned vineyard producing award-winning red and white wines. It is located in Bannockburn, Central Otago. The original 6.5 hectares of vines expanded in 2011 with the addition of another 10 hectares of land adjacent to Felton Road vineyard. This has been planted in Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Pinot Noir grapes.
Domain Road Vineyard's owners Graeme and Gillian Crosbie and their families have had a long association with the area. Graeme’s great grandfather built gold dredges up in the Nevis, while Gillian’s mother was a teacher at the local school for a short time. They have owned a house in Bannockburn for 25 years, and holidayed there for many years prior to that. Fascinated by the growth of vineyards and the wines they produced, the pair decided to try their hand at developing their own vineyard when an old apricot orchard in nearby Domain Road was for sale. In 2002, the land was purchased, cleared and planted in Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling grapes.
Domain Road vineyard is located in a sheltered sunny valley on the upper terraces of the Bannockburn sub-region of Central Otago. The vineyard area has been modified in parts by the gold mining practices of the 19th century although a large unmined area still exists and this is where the Pinot Noir is planted. The Riesling is planted on ground that has been stripped of the gold bearing gravels, leaving the mineral rich 'pipeclay exposed. Sauvignon Blanc is planted in 2 blocks, the first on top of a small hill (Templars Hill), largely schist gravel based with an overlay of loam soil, the second next to the Riesling on pipeclay soils. The pipeclay was named for the white clay used to make tobacco pipes by the early gold miners.
