Astrolabe Marlborough Pinot Noir 2018 $25 Astrolabe’s owner and winemaker Simon Waghorn once had the ambition to be a seaweed scientist. I know. Just think, if he’d pursued a life aquatic, we’d never have pinot noir like this. It’s ok, I’ll give you a second to compose yourself. This 2018 vintage shows exotic aromatics, ripe … Read More
Pinot Noir
Astrolabe Wairau Valley Marlborough Pinot Noir 2016
Astrolabe Wairau Valley Marlborough Pinot Noir 2016 $22 Six years on from harvest this pinot is moving into the baked berry spectrum, dried tamarillo, redcurrant and rooibos tea on the nose and palate combine with layers of spice and smoked cherry characters on the palate. The tannins are softly chewy and prickle nicely under the … Read More
Astrolabe Wrekin Marlborough Pinot Noir 2019
Astrolabe Wrekin Marlborough Pinot Noir 2019 $65 Aromatically this dark, glossy, pinot noir has a huge lift of red apple and cherry blossom right up front while on the palate it roars with fresh tamarillo, rhubarb and layers of earthy, black tea and soft, savoury meaty notes on the palate. It shows really prominent tannins … Read More
Astrolabe Sleepers Vineyard Kekerengu Coast Pinot Noir 2019
Astrolabe Sleepers Vineyard Kekerengu Coast Pinot Noir 2019 $50 Grown on coastal, limestone-laden soils 50mins drive south of Blenheim, this pinot noir treads softly on the palate yet is underpinned with exotic, savoury spices, baked tamarillo and wild raspberry notes from woah to go. Paired with: Roasted Eggplant with Spiced Lamb and Harissa dish … Read More
Kelly Washington Central Otago Pinot Noir 2018
Kelly Washington Central Otago Pinot Noir 2018 ($55) Created by winemaker Tamra Kelly, this is a lightly-styled, but full-flavoured and highly floral pinot noir that’s been crafted gently from fruit grown in Central Otago’s Gibbston Valley. Handpicked, partially whole-bunch fermented and matured for 11 months in French oak, it’s a gently-styled, raspberry and redcurrant-laced example … Read More
Ataahua Waipara Pinot Noir 2019
Ataahua Waipara Pinot Noir 2019 $40 Bursting with black tea, wild cherry and tamarillo on the nose and palate, this pinot noir is lush, plush and ready for action. Amongst the baking spice and tobacco notes, there’s a soft, creamy character that’s edged with raspberry and carries it through to a supercharged cherry-centric finish. Elegantly … Read More
Ataahua Waipara Pinot Noir 2018
Ataahua Waipara Pinot Noir 2018 $40 If you prefer your pinot on the leaner, more savoury and spicy end of the spectrum, then this North Canterbury example is for you. Soft, furry tannins, tweaks of smoked rhubarb and wild cherry wrap around a core of suede and leather in the mid-palate. Made by winemaker Stephanie … Read More
Jules Taylor OTQ Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2021
Jules Taylor OTQ Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2021 $32 Oh lordy will you just soak in how money this wine looks in its floral-etched bottle and its bright, perfectly pink, morganite hue as it pours into the glass. Grown in Jules’ Anderson Vineyard in the Upper Brancott area of Marlborough’s Southern Valley’s, the aroma spectrum … Read More
Seresin Zosia Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2021
Seresin Zosia Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2021 $26 The folk at Seresin are absolutely fizzing about this new rosé because it’s so lush, plush and powerful. Crafted from organic, biodynamically-farmed, Abel-clone fruit sourced from their Raupo Creek vineyard, it absolutely heaves with cranberry, raspberry and redcurrant characters and has a ribbon of vanilla running from … Read More
Matawhero Church House Gisborne Pinot Noir 2021
Matawhero Church House Gisborne Pinot Noir 2021 $25 I really like this fresh, frisky, vibrantly fruity pinot noir from Richard and Kirsten Searle at Matawhero. Pinot noir isn’t a new thing for Gisborne, it’s been around for many many years because the area provides a decent chunk of it for sparkling wine base each year. … Read More