The
wines of Framingham, Marlborough, New Zealand
One of Marlborough's hidden gems, and New Zealand's Riesling
and sweet wine specialist
Framingham
Wines, 19 Conders Bend Road, Renwick, Marlborough, NZ
Tel: +64 3 572 8884
Website: www.framingham.co.nz
Back
in the early 1980s Rex Brooke-Taylor, an entrepreneur from
Wellington, bought 17 hectares near Forrest Estate in Marlborough,
and began planting grapes. Initially he sold the grapes under
contract, but in 1994 the first Framingham wines were released, with
a new winery built here in 1997. Framingham was bought by Pernod
Ricard in 2004 and then sold to Portuguese company Sogrape in 2007.
Winemaker
Andrew Hedley has established a stellar reputation as a master of
Riesling, and Framingham’s Classic (dry-ish) and Select (off-dry,
lower alcohol) Rieslings are both thrilling examples. Framingham
have concentrated on aromatic whites and are experts in sweet wines.
They have the oldest Riesling vineyard in New Zealand, which is
nearly 30 years old.
Framingham’s
range is quite broad, and a recent addition has been the incredible
F-series wines, including a superb Pinot Noir and some remarkable
sweet wines from Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewürztraminer.
Some of these are only made in tiny quantities, but they are worth
seeking out.
Framingham’s
regular range offers some of New Zealand’s best value for money.
THE
WINES
Framingham
Dry Riesling 2004 Marlborough
Hand-picked,
whole-bunch pressed with no botrytis. Nice expressive petrolly edge
to limey nose, with a hint of toast. The palate is balanced,
expressive and full flavoured with some nice weight. Lovely. 90/100
01/09
Framingham
Classic Riesling 2008 Marlborough
A
mix of machine and hand harvested fruit. Very expressive aromatic
nose is floral and gently limey. The palate has lovely texture and
weight. Rounded and complex with beautiful balance. Just off-dry
with 17 g/l residual sugar. 91/100 01/09
Framingham
Classic Riesling 2009 Marlborough
Beautifully
aromatic with honeyed, appley, lemony fruit. The palate is just
lovely with great balance and no rough edges. Great personality
here. 92/100 01/10
Framingham
Select Riesling 2008 Marlborough
Thrilling
aromatics. Fresh, minerally, limey with lovely precision. Beautiful
palate is rich, limey and lemony with good acidity and nice
balancing sweetness. Very elegant. 55 g/l residual sugar and 7.5%
alcohol. 92/100 1/10
Framingham
Noble Riesling 2008 Marlborough
195
g/litre residual sugar. Very expressive nose with pure melon, peach
and lemon notes. Real focus and purity. The palate is dense, spicy
and pure with lovely herb-tinged fruit. Viscous and yet fresh at the
same time. 93/100 01/09
Framingham
Noble Riesling 2009 Marlborough
195
g/l residual sugar, 7.5% alcohol. Very intense with lovely lemony,
apricot, spice and raisin notes. Deliciously rich and grapey with
nice complexity. 93/100 1/10
Framingham
Noble Riesling 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
8.5%
alcohol. Sweet limey nose with some honeyed richness. Viscous and
very sweet with concentrated lime and apricot notes. Super sweet but
nicely balanced with good acidity and a subtly spicy finish. 91/100
12/11
Framingham
F-Series Riesling Auslese 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
8.5%
alcohol. Fine, lemony, grapey, melony aromatics. Real finesse. The
palate is very sweet and richly textured, showing lovely balance and
poise. Refined sweet lemon and melon fruit here. Nicely complex and
subtly spicy. 94/100 12/11
Framingham
F-Series Riesling Beerenauslese 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
9%
alcohol. Concentrated, rich and dense with lovely sweet, viscous
grape and lemon fruit and a really long finish. Massive power here:
the intense sweetness is balanced by the acidity. Remarkable wine of
great potential longevity. 95/100 12/11
Framingham
F-Series Riesling TBA 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
7.5%
alcohol. A really viscous liquid. Sweet lemon, honey, spice and
apricot nose. The palate is incredibly concentrated with fresh
lemony high tones and super-sweet apricotty depth. Powerful,
incredibly concentrated and yet beautifully focused and with some
delicacy. Precise and pure, and will outlive most of us. 97/100
12/11
Framingham
Pinot Gris 2008 Marlborough
Gently
honeyed edge to the nose, which is fruity, bright and nicely
aromatic. The palate is soft and smooth with lovely rounded fruit.
Very smooth with some flavour. 88/100 01/09
Framingham
Pinot Gris 2009 Marlborough
Lovely
fresh, grapey, herby, aromatic nose. The palate is broad and soft
textured with nice freshness and purity, a hint of lychee and some
grapey notes. 89/100 1/10
Framingham
F-Series Pinot Gris VT 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
8.5%
alcohol. Varietally true grapey, spicy nose is fine and expressive.
The palate is richly textured and fully sweet with a lingering,
spicy finish. Pear, grape and melon fruit characters with nice
balancing acidity. 93/100 12/11
Framingham
Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Marlborough
Fresh
but broad at the same time, with nice weight here and good acidity.
Nice intensity and lovely focus. 90/100 01/09
Framingham
F-Series Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Marlborough
From
one acre of vines, this is fermented in old barrels. Very textured
and quite complex with a nutty edge to the focused fruit. Restrained
and sophisticated with a hint of grassiness and savoury presence.
91/100 1/10
Framingham
F-Series Sauvignon Blanc 2010 Marlborough, New Zealand
13% alcohol. Powerful, taut aromatic nose with grapefruit, spice,
smoke and some herbal notes. The palate is dense and quite powerful
with grassy green notes and some rich herbal characters. Quince and
grapefruit, too. Odd but nice. 91/100 12/11
Framingham
Gewürztraminer 2008 Marlborough
Beautifully
expressive with floral lychee and herb nose. The palate is soft and
smooth with lovely fruit. Pure, expressive and balanced with lovely
fruit intensity. 90/100 01/09
Framingham
F-Series Gewürztraminer VT 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
8.5%
alcohol. Lovely open lychee, rose petal and grape nose is very
expressive with some tea-like complexity. The palate is textured and
sweet with rich lychee character. Beautifully balanced with good
acidity and spiciness. Thought-provoking. 94/100 12/11
Framingham
F-Series Gewürxtraminer SGN 2011 Marlborough, New Zealand
7.5%
alcohol. Viscous and concentrated. Engrossing nose of sweet lychee,
rose petals and herbs. The palate is incredibly sweet and intense
with honeyed Turkish delight characters. Opulent, smooth, viscous
and delicious. 94/100 12/11
Framingham
Pinot Noir 2007 Marlborough
Hand
picked fruit given a 5 day cold soak. 22% new oak. Lovely fresh,
beautifully poised dark cherry fruit nose. The palate is elegant and
nicely poised with smooth ripe, dark cherry fruit. Really elegant.
92/100 01/09
Framingham
F-Series Pinot Noir 2009 Marlborough, New Zealand
14.5% alcohol. Aromatically thrilling: sweet cherry fruit with
complex herb and spice elements. Pure, elegant and beguiling. The
palate is superbly poised and elegant with sweet cherry fruit offset
with a mineral/spice dimension and subtle green notes. A really
beautiful wine that’s quite profound. 96/100 12/11
Framingham
Montepulciano 2007 Marlborough
They’ve
been making this since 1998, and its one of only two examples of
this variety in the region. Sweet, pure elegant fruit with a spicy
edge – Morello cherry and some plummy bitterness. Really
expressive savoury style. 91/100 01/09
Framingham
Montepulciano 2008 Marlborough
Sweet
dark cherry fruit nose with nice purity and some chocolatey notes.
Lovely fruit on the palate: dark cherry and plum, with some
spiciness. 90/100 1/10
UK
agent: Les Caves de Pyrene
See
also:
Visiting
New Zealand's wine regions (series)
Wines
tasted as indicated (month/year)
Find these wines with wine-searcher.com
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