Lance Redgwell, the proprietor of Cambridge Road, is quite a character. He�s intense, opinionated, focused, tall, and maybe just a bit brash. After hearing stories about him from Alex Craighead (Kindeli), I knew I had to meet him and taste his wines. Right off the hop, a small group of friends and I were blown away by the electricity in each of his wines. Despite his looming presence, his wines are ethereal, and light handed.
His small 3ha vineyard was planted in 1986 in Martinborough, just north of Wellington. This southern extremity of New Zealand�s north island is ideal for ripening cool climate grape varieties, ranging from Pinot Noir to Riesling. He farms organically and uses the biodynamic practices he can justify. Between the vines you�ll find a thick blanket of nurturing cover crops. He farms without irrigation, which is shockingly rare in this area. To expand his portfolio, he purchases a small amount of fruit from nearby organic farmers.
In the winery he works as gently as he can with the fruit. He employs a lot of skin contact for while grapes, whole clusters for red grapes, and minimal sulphur. His earliest vintages show hints of new oak, but now everything is aged in well-seasoned, neutral vessels. They are all bottled unfined, and unfiltered. This truly is raw New Zealand fruit!
