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| Supernatural Wine Co. is a producer of certified organic, naturally vinified, low sulphur white and skin-fermented white wines from a north-facing hillside estate in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. Hayden Penny is the winemaker and viticulturist - he joined the company in 2013 and is a naturally gifted vigneron with a fine palate and a love of cool climate styles. The estate relies on great terroir and traditional processes. It aims to make all of its wines as naturally as possible in order to produce true terroir driven wines. Indigenous yeast gathered from the vineyard is used for fermentation and nothing is added to the wines other than a little sulphur before bottling. The wines are not fined and the skin-fermented wines have not been filtered from the 2015 vintage onwards. The focus is on producing dry aromatic and skin-fermented white wines in a very clean and direct style.
The Millar Road property is 19.4 hectares, with 8.9 hectares planted in vines – 8.0 hectares Sauvignon Blanc (approximately 18,000 plants) and 0.9 hectares Pinot Gris (approximately 1,800 plants). Vines were planted in 2004 and 2005. The vineyard at Millar Road has proven pedigree being in proximity to and on similar soils, slope and aspect as Te Mata Coleraine, one of New Zealand’s most accoladed vineyards - over 90% of New Zealand’s vineyards are on flat land with alluvial gravel soils, so this soil and site produces very distinctive wines in a New Zealand context. It is situated on a north-facing hillside with slopes up to 30 degrees. Soils are lime-rich clay with volcanic influence – they are classified as Matapiro sandy loam over Kidnappers Group sandstone and carbonaceous mudstone.Supernatural Wine Co. was founded in 2009 by Millar Road owner Gregory Collinge and winemaker Gabrielle Simmers. Gabrielle now runs Salmanazar, an export collective focused on taking New Zealand’s finest organic and biodynamic wines to the world. Farming/vinification practices: Supernatural Wine Co. obtained full organic certification with BioGro New Zealand in March 2015 and commenced biodynamic farming practices in 2015. The wines are vegan. The Supernatural aesthetic is unique. "We took more inspiration from beer branding than wine branding - we liked the way beer brands had managed to own their product and their bottles more than traditional wine companies had. And we wanted to create something simple that reflected the simple and natural approach to our winemaking. Then we did some research into the crown seal that we use and realized that it is one of the most effective wine seals, particularly when it comes to naturally-made wines. It is very effective at preventing oxidation and bacterial infection, while still allowing the wine to develop in bottle.” The distinctive design was recognized by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art where a bottle of The Supernatural was included in 2010 in a major exhibition entitled ‘How Wine Became Modern’. Supernatural Wine Co won the same year the coveted Gold Pin at the New Zealand Best Design Awards, recognizing the most innovative product and brand design. When the skin-fermented wines 'Green Glow' and 'Spook Light’ were introduced in 2013, their labels were developed in tandem as a pair of sophisticated older siblings to 'The Supernatural'. Green is the color of the Sauvignon Blanc grape and the 'glow' represents the deeper color obtained from the skin fermentation. The images on the label are deep sea creatures that glow green at the bottom of the sea. The 'spook light' is an unexplained orange light phenomenon that has been observed in the Ozark region of south-western Missouri and north-eastern Oklahoma. The bats and moths on the label represent the creatures finding the light. |
| Supernatural Wine Co Website |
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| The Supernatural Sauvignon Blanc |
| 100% Sauvignon Blanc The Supernatural (the name refers to the estate's viticultural practices) is farmed organically, vinified naturally and estate grown by winemaker Hayden Penny, and Viticulturist Emma Tait-Morris. A rich, opulent, aromatic white, the Supernatural is made with grapes sourced exclusively from low-yielding, organically grown estate vineyards planted in 2003 and 2004. Hayden believes in minimum intervention: he only adds sulphur at bottling for freshness and to bring the wine to the shelves. The grapes are destemmed, 4-6 hours of skin contact then long, slow press. Natural fermentation followed by extended lees contact (around 9 months) in stainless steel. No fining, light filtration. The Supernatural reflects the sun-drenched south sea days Hawke’s Bay is famous for. The smoky and spicy notes are characteristic of the site, along with richness and texture encouraged with skin and lees contact. Forget what you know about this variety, The Supernatural is a uniquely complex creature. Annual production is 4000 cases. |
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| Green Glow - Skin Fermented Sauvignon Blanc |
| 100% skin-fermented Sauvignon Blanc, farmed organically, vinified naturally and estate grown by winemaker Hayden Penny and viticulturist Emma Tait-Morris. The 2013 vintage is being heralded as a ‘one in 100 year’ vintage and was a perfect growing season. The vineyard holds ‘C2 Conversion’ status with www.biogro.co.nz and wines will be fully organically certified in 2015. The block has an excellent history of organic farming since first plantings in 1989, and with the renewed focus on organics the soil and vines are now coming naturally into balance and health, with wine quality increasing as a result. The vineyard is truly an amazing site for viticulture, situated in the Tuki Tuki Hills in Hawke’s Bay on a north-facing hillside with slopes up to 30 degrees. Soils are Kidnappers Group lime-rich clay, with volcanic influence. The site has proven pedigree being in proximity to and on similar soils, slope and aspect as Te Mata Coleraine, one of New Zealand’s most acclaimed vineyards. Over 90% of NZ’s vineyards are on flat land which generally means alluvial gravel soils, making this hillside site an unusual soil type of great interest. Hawke’s Bay’s climate is similar to Bordeaux but cooler, producing a more vibrant Sauvignon Blanc style that is versatile and food-friendly. The wine style falls somewhere between Bordeaux, Loire and New Zealand and it has its own unique and appealing character. Grapes were hand-picked from the Eastern section of the vineyard, which due to bonier, dustier soils and more wind exposure produces smaller, riper berries and lower yields. De-stemmed, pied de cuve ferment for 2-3 weeks, pressed off at 5 Brix (small basket press), rested on fine lees in stainless steel until bottling in August. Unfined, gently filtered. Deep gold. Vibrant fresh pine and lemongrass on the nose with more subtle hints of lavender, violet and lanolin. A delightful cleansing astringency on the palate with great intensity, opulence and length. 13.4% Alcohol. 1,620 bottles made. |
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| Spook Light - Skin Fermented Pinot Gris |
| 100% skin-fermented Pinot Gris, farmed organically, vinified naturally and estate grown by winemaker Hayden Penny and viticulturist Emma Tait-Morris. The 2013 vintage is being heralded as a ‘one in 100 year’ vintage and was a perfect growing season. The vineyard holds ‘C2 Conversion’ status with www.biogro.co.nz and wines will be fully organically certified in 2015. The block has an excellent history of organic farming since first plantings in 1989, and with the renewed focus on organics the soil and vines are now coming naturally into balance and health, with wine quality increasing as a result. The vineyard is truly an amazing site for viticulture, situated in the Tuki Tuki Hills in Hawke’s Bay on a north-facing hillside with slopes up to 30 degrees. Soils are Kidnappers Group lime-rich clay, with volcanic influence. The site has proven pedigree being in proximity to and on similar soils, slope and aspect as Te Mata Coleraine, one of New Zealand’s most acclaimed vineyards. Over 90% of NZ’s vineyards are on flat land which generally means alluvial gravel soils, making this hillside site an unusual soil type of great interest. Hawke’s Bay’s climate is similar to Bordeaux but cooler, and the climate contributes to a riper textured style of Pinot Gris that is perfectly suited to skin fermentation. Grapes were hand-picked from the steepest slopes of the vineyard which, due to bonier, dustier soils and good drainage and aspect, produce very high quality fruit. Destemmed, pied de cuve ferment for 2-3 weeks, pressed off at 5 Brix (small basket press), rested on fine lees in stainless steel until bottling in August. Unfined, gently filtered. Rose gold. Alpine strawberries, cherries and plums on the nose, with a lovely background of exotic spices. A delightful cleansing astringency on the palate with great intensity, opulence and length. 13.1% Alcohol. 1,500 bottles made. |
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