Prophet's Rock

 

It was fantastic to meet legendary kiwi winemaker Paul Pujol at his beautiful vineyard. The drive up from the Bendigo Loop was dramatic, with rugged cliffs and stunning views out over the valley below.

Vines are planted on ancient soils carved out by passing glaciers some 600,000 years ago. There is a mix of soil types with Burgundian chalk over clay as well as schist, the former helping to retain water, aiding the vines in what can only be described as an arid climate.

In the winery Paul talked us through his hands off, minimal intervention winemaking - a style honed from seasons in Burgundy, Alsace and Oregon. Amazingly the Pinot Noir is hand-plunged only once and the whites are simply whole bunch pressed; no skin contact or batonnage. All varietals spend time in barrel, with 20 year old barrels and foudres reserved for the aromatic Pinot Gris and Riesling.

And the wines! We tasted the wonderful Antipodes Chardonnay and Pinot Noir made with Francois Millet of Chambolle-Musigny, and the delicious Pinot Gris and Dry Riesling. We compared the Home Block Pinot Noir with the Olearia Pinot Noir - the former planted on chalk over clay and the latter on schist. The wines are vinified in exactly the same way, showcasing the difference in terroir. It was incredible to see the difference - the Olearia was bright and energetic and the Home Block darker and more intense.

Beautiful wines from a beautiful place 🍷

Prophet’s Rock was founded in 1999, with the goal to find sites in Central Otago like no others.

Two vineyards were established in the Bendigo sub-region: The Prophet’s Rock Home Vineyard and, subsequently, the Rocky Point. Both are steep and elevated, and each is distinctive – The Home Vineyard with its rare mix of soils, including schist, clay and chalk, and Rocky Point with its stony ground and almost treacherous slopes.

“In the winery, though, we find our muses in the old houses of Europe…”

Winemaker Paul Pujol refined his trade working in France’s classical wine regions, the Languedoc, Sancerre and, crucially, Burgundy and Alsace.

His traditional aesthetic — respectful, patient, vineyard-focused — resonates in the wines, and frees them to express the unique tenor of the sites. His winemaking is a sensitive, site-driven, and empathic approach which aims to express the beauty of the place rather than pronounced winemaking characters.

Each glass, then, embodies both the old world and the new, past and present unified by place.

You can read more about Prophet’s Rock and their wines here.