Quality
Nannette’s English Rose is made at the Hush Heath Winery by Owen Elias and his team.
The same care and attention is lavished on this wine as on the Balfour Brut Rosé. As with the sparkling cuvées, the taille fractions (juice that is released later in the pressing cycle, containing more flavour compounds, and is lower acidity and sugar) at Hush Heath are fermented separately, the alcohol levels are enriched higher than for sparkling bases to around 12% to give the finished wine more mouth feel.
All fermentations take place in stainless steel. Fermentation temperatures are kept low at around 15ºC to ensure a longer cooler fermentation, preserving the flavour characteristics of the varieties. Perhaps raspberry and wild strawberry flavours in the Pinot Noir, apple, stone and citrus sometimes in the Chardonnay. The acidity of the taille is about 2g / l less than the sparkling cuvée, usually ending up around 7-8g / l.
As with the Balfour Brut Rosé, the wines are not de-acidified, nor do they undergo malolactic fermentation. Sweetness in the wine is usually residual sugar left over from the fermentation, but is sometimes tweaked before bottling for the ideal balance.