Pinot Noir

TASTING NOTES
Aromas of ripe dark berry fruits dominate the nose with hints of spice and mocha notes in the background add complexity. Rich yet soft tannins form the backbone of this succulent and vibrant Pinot Noir. Spice flavours come through on the mid palate along with ripe dark cherry flavours and underlying savoury notes. This is a superbly balanced, elegant and weighted Pinot capable of ageing for up to ten years.

THE VINEYARD
This family owned and operated vineyard is on an old river terrace at the south end of Te Muna Valley. The stony soils with an underlay of limestone, a gentle north facing slope and exposure to westerly winds produce low volume crops of high intensity.

VINIFICATION
All fruit was carefully hand-picked over two vineyard passes. In the winery we destemmed all fruit and fermented in 3T open top tanks. The wine spent between 21 and 23 days on skins including punching down by hand once a day, before being pressed to French oak barrels. The wine underwent malolactic fermentation in barrel and remained on its lees for ten months before racking, blending and bottling. Indigenous yeasts are used which add to the wine?s complexity in addition to traditional methods of punching down the ferments by hand.

The Wrekin Vineyard lies within its own small valley located on the north facing slopes of the Fairhall Valley. It is part of a sub-region of Marlborough known as the Southern Valleys.

This wine showcases the outstanding 2015 growing season for Pinot Noir and is made by Jeremy Hyland (vigneron) and winemaker H?tsch Kalberer.

Red and dark berries intertwine with maraschino cherries and the more savoury tones of Mediterranean herbs. The tannins are soft and integrated, an Iron fist in a silk glove.

Bold, spicy and beautiful Pinot Noir from the deep south made by Matt Connell and Dom and Ally Mondillo, who founded Mondillo Wines. The couple were the first people to plant grapes in Bendigo, one of the most arid, dry sub regions in Central Otago, the world's southernmost wine region. Bendigo is often the first area in the wider region to harvest grapes each year and Dom Mondillo typically ensures that his grapes are 100% destemmed before fermentation. 

This wine was aged for 10 months in French oak, 25% new, which flatters its elegant red fruit flavours, providing silky flavours and textures. This wine drinks well now and will benefit from bottle age of at least four to five years.  

The Taylor Pass Pinot Noir fruit is planted on a mixture of soils. Stony soil that contributes fresh floral and red cherry fruit aromas, whereas silty loam soil provides earthy dense tannins and dark berry fruit flavours. The various clones and differing soil types are harvested separately to provide winemakers with as many flavour and texture options to choose from for this single vineyard wine.

The wine showcases an intense bouquet of ripe juicy blackberries and blueberries with hints of baking spices. A harmonious palate delivers some liquorice notes intermingled with black cherries, subtle dried herbs and finishes with round velvety smooth tannins.

Ripe hand picked fruit, gentle winemaking and maturation in French oak have resulted in a complex and powerful wine, with aromas of red berry fruits and violets, a rich and silky smooth palate and a long spicy finish. Excellent value, drinking fantastically well now and will develop and cellar for several years.

Commercial description

Terroir in a glass ? very site specific, sophisticated and unique. On the nose, blackberries, spice, violets and wild herb aromatics. Medium bodied with an interesting mix of red fruits and savoury notes. A complex, high energy wine, perfect to enjoy today or to patiently cellar.

Our flagship Pinot Noir, sourced primarily from our southern block. It carries the name of Surveyor ? John Turnbull Thomson linking both the land and its fruits to the vineyard owners, PM and David Hall-Jones family heritage.

35% whole bunch and 18% new oak.

Certified Organic

Earthy notes and freshly crushed forrest leaves lead the aromas in this complex and smooth Pinot Noir from Johner Estate winery in the central Wairarapa. This is an outstanding wine with depth and richness providing a plush mid palate texture to this lively, lovely wine. Drink now or cellar for five to six years+.

Stunning Pinot Noir from Waitaki Valley in North Otago, New Zealand.

Tasting Note: Intense aromas of blueberries, cherry and spices. Floral, herbal and forest floor notes bring complexity and elegance. The tannins are firm yet fresh makingfor real elegance.

Serious and structured Pinot Noir from one of Martinborough's oldest wineries and a tiny vineyard. This beautiful young wine is all about dry, savoury and earthy flavours balanced by vibrant ripe dark cherry fruit and spicy depth. It's a great drink now and will age superbly for up to 10 years. 

Roger Parkinson is was one of the first winemakers in Martinborough and produces this exceptional Pinot Noir from a small 0.8 hectare vineyard known as Lease Block, which is situated on Huangarua Road. This is Martinborough?s golden mile of wineries and vineyards. The small site was planted in 1999 in 100% Pinot Noir clone 5, 115, and 10/5.This wine is made with 15% whole bunch fermentation, maceration for 22 days and maturated in French oak, 33% new for 20 months. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, this wine is vegan friendly.

This is drinking beautifully with silky mouthfeel and ripe red cherry fruit as well as dark plum flavours; a gorgeous wine with earthy depths of flavour. Stunning new release from the Huntress, winemaker Jannine Rickards, who uses 40% whole bunch ferment in her Pinot Noir - a winemaking method that enhances structure and adds grapevine tannin to wine rather than relying on oak for weight in the wine. This is the fourth vintage of Huntress Pinot and is made from On Giant's Shoulders Vineyard; it's a blend of four different clones of Pinot Noir;  10/5, Abel, 828 and clone 5.

Delicious, made in small volumes, get in quick. 

Escarpment Pinot Noir is made by one of New Zealand's most admired winemakers, Larry McKenna, who adores Pinot and makes it in a delicate but powerful style. Sound like an oxymoron? Try this excellent wine. It's made from hand picked grapes from a blend of Martinborough vineyards which are planted in clones 667, 777, Abel, 114 and 115. Gentle hand plunging extracts taste but keeps tannin in balance and the finished wine is aged for 11 months in French oak, 25% of it being new barrels.

Dark red, purple hue. Dark brooding nose of plum and cherry, smoky stalk tannins and toasty oak. The palate is opulent with good weight and texture. Fruit is balanced by chalky tannins and nice acidity.

Exceptional North Canterbury Pinot Noir made in small volumes from the evocatively named isolated hill vineyard in Waiau. Spicy aromas and structured tannins lead into a full body wine made using indigenous yeast fermentation and spending 26 days on skins with ageing for 15 months in French oak.

This wine comes from winemaker Dom Maxwell, the talented winemaker at Greystone. Forager is his own personal winemaking project.