Pinot Noir

This outstanding expression of Pinot Noir comes from one of the smallest wine regions in New Zealand, the cool climate Waitaki Valley in North Otago. 

Flavours of ripe plums, red cherries and a very subtle but noticeable smoky aroma all intermingle in this beautifully complex Pinot from the outstanding, if challenging climate in Waitaki - a tiny and great quality wine region. 

‘Luta’, is a wine producer based in Nelson and the name is derived from Lutum, which is Latin for clay and pays reference to the Moutere clays of which the grapes are grown.

Bright, fresh aromatics of tamarillo, strawberry, cherry, violet and a hint of old wood. This wine is plump and fleshy with bright red fruits dominating the palate. Tamarillo, blueberry and vanilla pod linger on the palate while being rounded out with soft plush tannin.

All clones were destemmed and fermented together in a stainless steel tank for 6 days then pressed and left to finish fermentation in tank before being transferred to a mixture of old French barrique, puncheon (70%) and stainless steel (30%), for maturation.

This wine was aged on fine lees for 10 months before being racked and blended in stainless steel and aged for a further 6 months and bottled in October 2022.

Commercial description.

In exceptional years our winemakers carefully select the four best barrels of our finest Pinot Noir. Every bottle is one of fewer than 1200 bottles in existence.

Four Barrels Pinot Noir displays generous plum, cherry and ripe berry fruit aromas with a hint of soft spice. The palate is rich and showing layers of silky-smooth dark berry flavours underpinned by subtle notes of dry ‘Provencal’ herbs. A beautifully balanced elegant, lush wine with a lingering finish.

This regional blend of Burgundian Pinot Noir is new in store and impressive with its clean, fresh, savoury flavours, which underpin its lively red fruit and juicy acidity. This is beautiful drinking right now with firm tannins and adding depth to the mid palate and length of flavour to the finish. 

Good drinking now or in the next two to three years.

This fleshy, savoury, super silky and earthy Pinot Noir is made from grapes grown on a small .8 of a hectare situated on the road to Castlepoint in the northern Wairarapa. The first vintage was 2016 and the wine is a  collaboration between winemakers Karl Johner and Raphael Burki. All grapes in this smooth Pinot were hand harvested with 20% whole bunch to provide floral and fruit aroma lift and silkiness. The wine was aged for 12 months in French oak, 20% new, and bottled without filtering or fining. It is vegan friendly.Lime Hill Pinot Noir is made from a small vineyard of .8 of a hectare situated on the road to Castlepoint in the northern Wairarapa. The first vintage was in 2016 and the brand is a  collaboration between winemakers Karl Johner (of Johner Wines at Gladstone) and Raphael Burki, who have been making wine together since 2009. 

This wine is bottled without any filtering or fining. It is vegan friendly.

One of the best South Island Pinot Noir with its gentle spicy aromas, deep earthy flavours and beautiful structural style, supported by lifted red berry and cherry aromas. This is a stunning wine. 

Greystone is a North Canterbury's winery situated in the Waipara Valley where its vines are planted on the limestone rich hillsides with north facing aspects and producing 100% estate grown, 100% certified organic wines. This wine consistently over delivers with savoury flavours, a silky character and the ability to age extremely well, thanks to Dom Maxwell's winemaking and great viticulture from the Greystone team in the Waipara Valley, North Canterbury.

It's one of our favourites here at Regional because it consistently over delivers with savoury flavours reminding many of us of the great mushrooms of the world and the complex taste of outstanding Pinot Noirs. This wine has elegance, a silky character and the ability to age extremely well, thanks to Dom Maxwell's winemaking and great viticulture from the Greystone team in the Waipara Valley, North Canterbury. 

Certified organic with BioGro NZ.

About Greystone

The Greystone wine story began in 2000 when the Thomas Family bought an old sheep farm on the Omihi hills in the Waipara Valley, North Canterbury. The rolling limestone hills lured this family in and their goal was a single minded one: to make great wines from the limestone rich soils here. Fast forward 20 years and Greystone is one of the great (and, some might say, yet to be fully discovered) wineries in this outstanding wine region. Not least due to the work of winemaker Dom Maxwell and general manager Nick Gill, who began working together in 2005 and has grown along with the brand and quality. 

Biodynamic Pinot Noir from the Pisa Range in Central Otago. This is Burgundy meets Otago in style, with dark cherries and herbal spice notes on the nose and a medium palate of further dark cherries, licorice spice and nutty oak elements. Acid, tannins and fruit all in balance and delivered in a lush velvet mouthful.

Pair with duck, pork beef and lamb over the next four years.

You could say this is the ultimate insider's wine. It's a new brand made by highly experienced Marlborough winemaker William Hoare, who was the original winemaker and then GM at Fromm. Novum is his new brand. It is named after the Roman word 'novum', meaning new. The grapes are from Dog Point's Settlement Vineyard, which is certified organic. It's tight, youthful, medium bodied, silky in texture and will age superbly.

Wai-iti is a single vineyard Pinot Noir from Waipara's The Boneline winery. Generously fruity and full bodied with great structure and texture on the palate. This is an elegant wine at a great price.

Rich, inky, dark plum coloured wine with intense aromas of cherry, cranberries and raspberry, complemented by an earthy herbal note. The sumptous palate offers baked rhubarb, damson plums and savoury notes, with a strong backbone of chalky fine drying tannins and focused acidity. It?s nicely integrated, complex, with excellent balance and persistent length - Simply stunning!

Churton Pinot Noir  

WINEMAKING
The grapes were 100% handpicked and gravity fed into open top fermenters with 20% whole bunch inclusion. The skins were gently pumped over twice a day. The total time on skins was 21 days before being gently pressed off and matured in French oak for 16 months. The wine went through 100% malolactic fermentation in early spring before blending and bottling.


TASTING NOTES
On the nose fragrant and bright aromas of red liquorice, rose petals, dried spices, cranberries, cherries and blackberries. On the palate a core of wild strawberry and bramble fruits flavours is underpinned by silky tannins and fine acidity, with a long, crisp finish of slate and spice. This wine is concentrated but elegant.

Wellingtonian John Porter is a lawyer by day and winemaker by night, at least that's how his small production Pinot Noirs began life when he and his family first planted vines in Martinborough in 1992. 

This wine drinks beautifully now at five years old with fresh, delicate red fruit flavours over a core of savoury complexity and great structure providing length and texture to this wine. We think it represents great value for money and still has further time to evolve in the bottle, for those with the willpower to do so.

All the grapes in this wine were hand picked, fermented in small tanks and aged in French oak with a modest proportion of new oak. 

This exciting Alexandra Pinot Noir is made from grapes grown on warm, north facing slopes across the Clutha River from Alexandra township on Earnscleugh Road on a site that was known for the early establishment of grape vines in the 1870s during the goldrush. It's the area of Central Otago that most attracted the shareholders, a group of friends who collectively own the vineyard and Grasshopper Rock wine brand.

Pinot Noir is the only wine they produce and theirs has a history of exceptionally elegant aging, thanks to its high acidity (a direct expression of the cool climate here) and its savoury, earthy flavours as it develops in the bottle.

This wine drinks beautifully now and has a long life ahead, for those with willpower. 

Silky, lithe and lovely savoury Martinborough Pinot Noir, named after the late Ted Wilde, co owner of Cirrus Vineyard south of Martinborough village and home to the grapes in this wine. This elegant wine is made with grapes grown in the outstanding dry, warm 2020 vintage; a year with a long autumn and great quality fruit, which made fabulous wines such as this beautiful fragrant red and dark cherry take on Pinot Noir, which has a medium body and beautifully balanced acidity leading to a long finish. 

Experience the bold character of our first Syrah release, crafted from fruit grown in the Bridge Pa Triangle of Hawke's Bay. This wine is rich with enticing warm spices, cocoa powder, and baked red fruits. The palate is velvety, featuring raspberry and plum skin, with a spice finish that makes it perfect for cosy winter nights.

Hand-harvested and wild fermented, this Syrah includes 30% whole cluster fermentation and aged for 10 months in French oak barriques. The careful winemaking process ensures a balanced and complex profile.

Ideal for sipping by a fire on a chilly evening, this Syrah pairs wonderfully with hearty dishes like venison, wild game, or rich stews.