Dawn Chorus Hawkes Bay Rose 2025

$28.00

Dawn Chorus is Hawke's Bay's organic sister project to East Coast Trading's Sauvignon Blanc, made by winemaker Rod McDonald for owner Jo Throp on New Zealand's East Coast. The rosé comes off vines on sandy riverbed soil at the foot of uplifted limestone hills, harvested in the cool hours after dawn to hold onto acidity, then given a long rest on lees before a single-pass filtration. It's an easy, mineral-driven pour built for warm-weather sipping, not a sweet patio wine.

Strawberry and blueberry fruit up front with a streak of minerality. Bright acidity and a rich palate carry a hint of grip through to a mouth-filling, complex finish — drier and more textured than the average rosé.

Wild-caught salmon is the producer's own match; smoked trout, grilled shrimp, or a charcuterie spread do just as well stateside.

The vineyard sits about 20 miles from the sea, nestled at the foot of uplifted limestone hills in a valley that was a salt lake tens of thousands of years ago — the reason the shallow river-silt soils here run slightly saline over deep sub-soils of greywacke stone. Winemaker Rod McDonald farms organically for owner Jo Throp, timing harvest to the cool hours after dawn.