FORAGER

The Vineyard
The Method
Winemaking
The Wine

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FORAGER

1.THE VINEYARD

2.THE METHOD

3.THE WINEMAKER

4.THE WINE

At Forager Wine, it all started with a curiosity to let nature be more involved. To allow the wine to naturally ferment from grapes to wine outside in the vineyard.

I wanted to make a small batch of wine that I could truly call my own – and, who knows, perhaps something to pass onto the kids one day if things worked out alright.

Focusing on Pinot Noir that defines what we love about this variety – it can balance a fine sensory line between savoury and varietal fruit. Pushing boundaries while adhering to the traditional art of making wine.

When you plant Pinot Noir on limestone slopes located in cool climate weather perfection, the sense of place shines through strongly.

Enter ‘Forager’ – hand picked hillside grapes, using wild vineyard fermentations, no fining or filtration and aging without the use of heavy oak. It’s Pinot Noir with purity – and we think it’s a fine natural expression of this classic variety.

We are so glad you found us.

Dom

Forager Winemaker

THE VINEYARD
THE METHOD
WINEMAKING
THE WINE

The Vineyard

Forager Wine, Dom in vineyard

The Vineyard

Isolated Hill,
North Canterbury

 

There’s a very good reason why the best grapes are planted in this location.

We’re fortunate to have a wonderful relationship with dedicated grape growers and passionate farmers – The Black family. Their farm, ‘Isolated Hill’ – is uniquely situated on the limestone hills of Waiau, North Canterbury – 40 minutes scenic drive from the Waipara grape growing region, in the South Island of New Zealand. Andy and Jill Black first planted their renown vines back in 2000; 0.7 hectares of Pinot Noir to Abel and 667 clones. Vine density is 5000/ha, encouraging roots to dive deep into the limestone fissures.

The vineyard is located on the same hillside as the Amuri Limeworks, providing the ultimate mix of geology and cool climate. The north-west facing vines are tended by hand through frosty mornings to baking in mid-summer afternoons. Overlooking the Waiau River, this is beyond doubt a beautiful place to enjoy a glass of the finest wine.

Underfoot

The Amuri limestone is many millions of years old – deep, and hard in places, but allows for the natural drawing of water for the vines roots. Underfoot the real magic happens, as the fine soil:vine balance plays its part allowing the uptake of natural nutrients and minerals into the grapevine phloem, where the vine uses them for overall health and ripening of the grapes. The Burgundian varieties of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir respond well to these soils in the right climate like Waiau offers.
Forager Wine
Forager Wine
The cool climate of North Canterbury brings unique challenges, but helps to preserve a genuine freshness to the fruit, as acidity stays beautifully intact during the final weeks of ripening. Isolated Hill Vineyard is surrounded by foothills and the majestic mountains of the Southern Alps – a dramatic backdrop to the vines as they bud and flourish.

The Method

The Heartbreak Grape

 

Allowing a wine to truly speak of place and season requires a light touch, intervening rarely – and only when it’s necessary. As stewards of each vintage, we remain close, waiting to guide the wine onto each next step – its evolution towards a bottled wine. The fruit is always hand picked, with careful attention to the individual sorting.
Forager Wine, vineyard
Forager Wine, Dom in vineyard

Outdoor Fermentation

 

Next is the wonders of fermentation. Traditionally this has always been performed under the roof of a winery building, where conditions are controlled and monitored. For Forager wines, this has been shunned in favour of allowing the fruit to ferment outside in the vineyard. When we did our first vintage, we knew we were pioneering this unique technique in New Zealand, and were excited by the potential results. This wild process allows the naturally microbial life of the vineyard environment to perform the fermentation. Without the use of temperature control the young wine will be open to the seasonal weather influence – sometimes fermenting warmer, and sometimes cooler depending on the year. After resting on skins in the vineyard for up to a month, the wine is pressed to fine grained French oak barrels for 15 months of carefully monitored aging before the bottling. Our own considered approach to making site-driven wine confidently speaks of its place.

Winemaking

Forager Wine, Dom in vineyard

Dom Maxwell

 

After many years working both locally and internationally in Europe and North America Dom Maxwell decided to start up Forager Wine in 2012. Dom has been making wine in North Canterbury since 2005 (incidentally a dry and robust year for Pinot!), and resides most of his time working as winemaker for the renowned Greystone Wines in the Waipara Valley, where the owners have let him follow his dreams of having his own small quality driven wine company.

 

Dom’s philosophy on winemaking was further moulded through working international harvests in Burgundy, Oregon and Rheingau.

 

Dom and his family are North Canterbury locals, enjoying the abundant outdoors on offer in the region, which includes of course wine and food. Dom has twice been named NZ Winemaker of the Year, accolades that place him in a small group of inspired winemakers.

Single Vineyard Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir 2022

FORAGER WINE
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This is the tenth release of Forager Pinot Noir, after frost wiped out the 2021 crop. 2022 was a naturally low yielding season as the vines rejuvenated from the 2021 frost. The season provided challenges throughout – requiring more hands on work in the vineyard as rain and higher humidity bought more growth to the vines. Several passes through this small vineyard to tend to shoot thinning, bunch thinning, dropping shoulders and leaf plucking have provided the natural raw ingredients for a vibrant and expressive wine. The fruit was hand picked in early April and left outside in the vines to ferment with a full 28 days on skins, before bringing to the winery for a gentle pressing to French oak barrels. The wine was aged for 15 months before bottling without fining or filtration.
$55.00

AVAILABLE

Single Vineyard Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir 2020

FORAGER WINE
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This is the ninth release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2020 was a season providing both good crop levels and wonderful pure fruit. A season beginning with good soil moisture led to a period of mixed weather through late Spring and early Summer. The late season was exceptional allowing for good ripening and healthy fruit condition. Several passes through this small vineyard to tend to shoot thinning, bunch thinning, dropping shoulders and leaf plucking have provided the natural raw ingredients for a vibrant and expressive wine. The fruit was hand picked in late March and left outside in the vines to ferment with a full 26 days on skins, before bringing to the winery for a gentle pressing to French oak barrels. The wine was aged for 14 months before bottling without fining or filtration.
$55.00

AVAILABLE

Pinot Noir 2019

FORAGER WINE
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*Very Limited Bottles Available* This is the eighth release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2019 was a low yielding season. A cool start to the season, followed by largely fine and quite dry conditions led to small volumes of ripe and concentrated fruit. Several passes through this small vineyard to tend to shoot thinning, bunch thinning, dropping shoulders and leaf plucking have provided the natural raw ingredients for a vibrant and expressive wine. The fruit was hand picked in early April and left outside in the vines to ferment with a full 28 days on skins, before bringing to the winery for a gentle pressing to French oak barrels. The wine was aged for 15 months before bottling without fining or filtration.
$85.00

SOLD OUT

Pinot Noir 2018

FORAGER WINE
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This is my seventh release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2018 was a very warm season…Good flowering conditions and sustained warmth lead to plentiful bunches. Crop levels were reduced through manual thinning to around 6.5 T/Ha. Hand-picked and hand-sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site. Temperature fluctuations in the vineyard environment add a layer of complexity to the fermentation process. This season the warmth led to a shorter cold-soak leading to slightly lighter colour – perhaps more Pinot-esque. This is the second time I have taken fruit from the Isolated Hill Vineyard in North Canterbury and whilst the wines show contrasting seasons, the textural background shares common ground.

$85.00

SOLD OUT

Forager Wine - Pinot Noir 2017

Pinot Noir 2017

FORAGER WINE
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This is my sixth release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2017 was a mixed season… fine to begin with and wet towards the end of the season. Crop levels were naturally low around 4 T/Ha. Hand-picked and hand-sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site. Temperature fluctuations in the vineyard environment add a layer of complexity to the fermentation process, with a prolonged pre-fermentation maceration and cooler soaking temperatures than I would expect inside a winery. This is the first time I have taken fruit from the Isolated Hill Vineyard in North Canterbury.
$95.00

SOLD OUT

Forager Wine - Pinot Noir 2016

Pinot Noir 2016

FORAGER WINE
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This is my fifth release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2016 was a balanced season with mid summer rains and otherwise warm and dry conditions. The bunches were full after a good flowering and ripe with a mix of red and dark fruits. Hand-picked and hand-sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site. Temperature fluctuations in the vineyard environment add a layer of complexity to the fermentation process, with a prolonged pre-fermentation maceration and cooler soaking temperatures than I would expect inside a winery. This wine was picked and fermented at the Blacks Ave Vineyard, Waipara.
$115.00

SOLD OUT

Forager Wine - Pinot Noir 2015

Pinot Noir 2015

FORAGER WINE
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This is my fourth release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2015 was a very dry season. We experienced warm temperatures after an initially slow start to Spring. The bunches were small and ripe with lovely intensity. Hand-picked and hand-sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site. Temperature fluctuations in the vineyard environment add a layer of complexity to the fermentation process, with a prolonged pre-fermentation maceration and cooler soaking temperatures than I would expect inside a winery.
$125.00

SOLD OUT

Pinot Noir 2014

FORAGER WINE
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This is my third release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2014 was an early season – with a warm start to the spring and continued warm and somewhat stormy weather throughout the summer. Hand-picked and hand-sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site. Temperature fluctuations in the vineyard environment add a layer of complexity to the fermentation process, with a prolonged pre-fermentation maceration and cooler soaking temperatures than I would expect inside a winery.
$125.00

SOLD OUT

Pinot Noir 2013

FORAGER WINE
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This is my second release of Forager Pinot Noir. 2013 was a lovely season – blessed by sunny days throughout the growing season and a settled harvest period. Hand-picked and hand- sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site. Temperature fluctuations in the vineyard environment add a layer of complexity to the fermentation process, with a prolonged pre-fermentation maceration and cooler soaking temperatures than I would expect inside a winery.
$125.00

SOLD OUT

Pinot Noir 2012

FORAGER WINE
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This wine is a little aside from my hands-on day (and sometimes night) job, making wines at Greystone and Muddy Water. Two reasons for making this wine; the first being a desire to start a small family business and secondly to pursue a dream to craft a Pinot Noir with as little intervention as I can handle. Hand-picked and hand-sorted, the grapes are then returned to sit amongst the vines where they once grew. Giving indigenous yeasts from the vineyard the opportunity to create a true expression of the actual vineyard site.
$125.00

SOLD OUT

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North Canterbury

1. The Vineyard
2. The Method

3. The Winemaker

4. The Wine

BUY WINE
TRADE
LICENCE
CONTACT

FORAGER

NORTH CANTERBURY

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    Dom Maxwell
    dom@foragerwine.co.nz

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    Founded in 2012, Forager Wine is the small, quality driven wine company of North Canterbury local and twice named NZ Winemaker of the Year, Dom Maxwell

    For general enquiries, please contact:

    dom@foragerwine.co.nz

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