Erica and Kim Crawford relaunched their wine career by purchasing a property on Ugbrooke Road, off Redwood Pass Road in the Lower Dashwood area of the Awatere Valley in 2004, naming it ‘Loveblock Farm’. They have tended their vines with great care, converting to organics in 2008 and gaining BioGro organic certification in 2012. There are two main sections, the 72 ha Hillside and 12.56 ha Woolshed and Triangle blocks. A number of aromatic whites and Pinot Noir are made, but the main variety planted is Sauvignon Blanc. The wines are made at the nearby Awatere River Wine Co. facility.
2017 was one of the most challenging vintages in Marlborough, but the accumulated experience of the Crawfords gave them clear paths to follow. The Crawfords report their organic vineyards performed extremely well, and picking was conducted in 12 April, a flower day on the biodynamic calendar, after Cyclone Debbie and before Cyclone Cook. The vineyards were heavily leaf plucked to seek greater ripeness. The Sauvignon Blanc was small batch fermented utilising some barrel-fermentation and MLF conversion, and 10% Pinot Gris was added to the blend. I review the wine here. www.loveblockwine.com
