Kina Cliffs Nelson Pinot Noir 2013 $30 ★★★★
The instant I stuck my nose inside the glass, I was met with a whoomph of cherry-chocolate, smoked coconut, dried herb and peppery plushness. It’s been sixteen years since Julie and Alistair Ashcroft purchased their 4.5 hectare block overlooking Tasman Bay and twelve years since the vines took hold in the ground – yet they’ve only recently appeared on my radar. Clearly I’ve been missing something because gently-grippy, juicy, rasperry-driven pinot’s like this are a joy to drink. It’ll only improve through 2016 too.
