Daniel Brennan is serious talent where winemaking is concerned, a young up-and-comer from the US carving a kiwi living creating wine in Hawke’s Bay and Martinborough. It’s his background in the rock n roll business that’s responsible for the name Decibel, but this pinot noir is cool and calm in the background as opposed to … Read More
Pinot Noir
Saint Clair Pioneer Block 14 Doctor’s Creek Pinot Noir 2014 $37.90 (4.5 stars)
South west of Blenheim, the soils become infused with clay, making it the perfect place to put pinot in the ground. The result is a highly floral, black tea and cherry-laced pinot noir with real balance and charm. Edged with spice and smoke, there’s delicious complexity at every level here and it’s only getting better … Read More
Delta Hatters Hill Marlborough Pinot Noir 2015 $34 (5stars)
I really enjoy this kind of pinot noir, the kind that packs a punch with a fistful of fruit in a cloud of sexy spices. Plush cherry and raspberry layers are interwoven with sweet black tea and allspice on the nose and palate, the acidity adds succulence and juiciness to the mouthfeel and the tannins … Read More
Churton Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013
Churton Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013 $44 Biodynamic winegrowing is where the Weaver family of Waihopai Valley excel, so when the winemaker offers to show you his “poo pits” I suggest you accept with a smile because (weirdly) they’re actually rather inspiring. This pinot erupts with bright berries, tangy black tea and sweet dark fruit concentration. … Read More
Nga Waka ‘Lease Block’ Martinborough Pinot Noir 2014
Nga Waka ‘Lease Block’ Martinborough Pinot Noir 2014 $50 ★★★★½ I fell in love with the concentration and intensity of this wine from the very first sip. With so much lush, ripe red fruit and vibrant spices on the nose, you think it’s going to taste over the top and flouncy. However the cocoa, cherry … Read More
Fairmont Estate Admiral Hill Wairarapa Pinot Noir 2012
Fairmont Estate Admiral Hill Wairarapa Pinot Noir 2012 $25 ★★★ Lovers of old-school earthiness in their pinot will be all over this wine that’s produced from fruit sourced from the Gladstone Terraces. Made by Jon McNab, it’s a wine boasting aromas of ancient fallen tree trunks, lush forest floor notes, savoury cherry and shitake mushroom … Read More
Mahana Clays and Gravels Nelson Pinot Noir 2013
Mahana Clays and Gravels Nelson Pinot Noir 2013 $42 ★★★★½ Nelson produces some of the best pinot noir in the country and this is a great example of why. I love the aromas of tea, baked strawberries, cherries and all manner of earthy-sweet smokiness. ‘Mahana’ means ‘warm’ in Maori and there’s definitely smoothness and warmth … Read More
Mud House Dambuster Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014
Mud House Dambuster Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 $39 ★★★★ This is the first single-vineyard release to come from the clay soils of their new ‘Woolshed’ vineyard located near the Delta Dam. Originally an old RNZAF base on land deemed too crap for cropping, this patch of dirt is more than proving itself in vines if … Read More
Bannock Brae Goldfields Central Otago Pinot Noir 2014
Bannock Brae Goldfields Central Otago Pinot Noir 2014 $30 ★★★★ This is one heck of an exotically perfumed pinot made for the Bannockbrae team by world-class winemaking wahine, Sarah-Kate (SK) Dineen. Boasting plum, black tea, hedgerow fruits, savoury, peppery notes and a chunk of cherry on the palate, it has freshness, buoyancy and real character. … Read More
Bladen Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013
Bladen Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013 $33 ★★★½ A very light coloured pinot, that has a soft raspberry and cherry lift, tannins with powdery grip in the mouth and a long, medicinally-spicy finish. If you like your pinot smooth, easy, light and juicy, then this is for you. www.bladen.co.nz