Central Otago Spring Release 2024 ---- Tranche 1 ---- Pinot Noir

A rare and exciting opportunity to taste through many of the Spring release wines from Bannockburn, Bendigo, Gibbston, Pisa, Queensbury and Wanaka took place on November 29th. The venue was the Misha’s Vineyard cellar door private tasting room.

Many thanks to Misha and Andy for providing the space.

None of the Misha’s Vineyard Wines were included in the tasting. You can see recent reviews for their wines here: https://www.camdouglasms.com/reviews/tag/Misha%27s+Vineyard.

Scan the QR code below to link to images from the tasting.

The term ‘Blend’ in some of the wine titles below refers to the source material to make the wine comes from more than 1 site.

All wines were tasted blind - many thanks to Misha Wilkinson and Janet Blackman for ensuring the wines were bagged and taped, glassware was pristine clean the room was set up with lots of light.

This is not a competition and the wines were scored according to how they presented on the day.

I welcome any comments or questions you may have

The # at the end of each note is the score - for example 93 [points out of a possible 100]

Pinot Noir Spring Release Tasting November 29th, 2024

Crimson Peak Central Otago Pinot Noir 2023 Alexandra. Super bright and fresh, a core of varietal black cherry and baked raspberry fruits, scents from barrel are light and weave into the fruit nicely, generous and enticing. Dry, fresh, juicy and ready. Flavours reflect the bouquet, a plush and refreshing style driven by core of fruits then fine tannins and acidity. Balanced and well made with best drinking from day of purchase through 2033+. 93

Grasshopper Rock Earnscleugh Vineyard Pinot Noir2022 Alexandra. Very bright and very enticing bouquet, lots of fresh red berries, cranberry and raspberry in the lead, black currant and some nettles. Lots pf flesh and fruit on the palate, an abundance of fruit tannins and acidity framing the core flavours of raspberry and cherry then cranberry notes. Well made with a light chalky mouthfeel and lengthy expressive finish. Best from 2026 through 2032. 93+

Monte Christo Pisa Pinot Noir 2023 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. The bouquet showcases a mix of red berries and fresh wet stone mineral qualities, lees and a mix of fruit and barrel spices. Youthful and new. Salivating and slightly saline with some firm chalky tannins and a backbone of acidity. Raspberry and boysenberry, cranberry and some sweetness of oak all layer into a taut and youthful mouthfeel. Dry, some tautness and medium+ (ish) length. Best from late 2025 through 2032+. 93

Rockburn Eleven Barrels Pinot Noir 2023 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Varietal and new with pure fruited scents of plums and cherry, some dark roses and savoury earth smoke qualities. Dry and youthfully taut on the palate with fine polished tannins and plenty of acidity. On the second and third sips and as the wine opens out in glass a saline quality mixes with the fruit, some oak sweetness then savoury earthy qualities return. A lighter weighted wine with texture and length and flavours that continue to reflect the bouquet. Best from 2025 through 2032+. 93+

Valli Pisa Pinot Noir 2023 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. New, raw and ripe bouquet with a core of dark berries and black currant, spices from oak and fruit then a light sweetness also from the oak and alcohol. Firm and dry with flavours of dark berries and savoury spiced plums, firm tannins and plenty of acidity frame the fruit nicely. Taut and new too with some palate tickle and settling in time still needed. It just needs time, best drinking from 2026 through 2034. 93

Chard Farm The Tiger Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Very youthful and new bouquet, a mix just ripe and riper red berry fruits, the extra year in bottle shows the settling in is still underway and the wine overall still needs time. Well-made and dry with core flavours of plums and red berries, some baking spices from barrel and a stony earthy quality. Best from 2026 through 2033+. 92+

Amisfield Breakneck Reserve Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Varietal, fruity and enticing aromas of dark plums and baked raspberry, earth smoke and stony mineral qualities. Some wild raspberry and forest berry qualities mingle with savoury thyme scents and flavours. Firm youthful tannins and a backbone of acidity frame the palate nicely. Decent weight and length with a lick of pepper spice (not black pepper) and smoke. Dry, new and needs time. Best from 2026 through 2034. 93

Chard Farm Mason Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Youthful power and ripeness of fruit lead to aromas and flavour combinations of wood spice and dark berries, a savoury earthy complexity and mix of earth smoke and newish wood. Delicious and dry, savoury and new, flavours included dried herb and wild thyme. Salivating with acidity and tannins, dry and lengthy, well-made and taut. Best from 2027 through 2035+. 95

Amisfield Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Classic CO bouquet of ripe red berry fruits and savoury earthy spice qualities lead to a palate of plums and ripe raspberry fruits, some sweet oak with a mx of new and older framing the palate and layering their own texture and adding to the overall mouthfeel.  Flavours and textures repeat several times over as the wine opens out. Consistent, dry and well made. Best from 2026 through 2033. 93

Domaine Rewa Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Poised, ripe, new, varietal and fruity. The hallmarks of a young wine with its youthful quiver and mix of floral and fruit enticements frame what's to come very nicely. A firm and dry wine touches the palate first then flavours of dark red berries and a mix of earth and wood spices fold in. Salivating and taut, varietal, fruity and with some good length this wine age well and develop complexities over time. Best from 2028 through 2038. 94+

Chard Farm Viper Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. A sense of site as well as style with a bouquet of mineral and earth, fruit and floral mystery. A dry wine with a core of plum and red berry fruits, an abundance of fine tannins and backbone of acidity, very youthful with a few tickles on the nose then flavours from the bouquet repeating. Fresh, new, taut, balanced and well made with some fine almost chalk dusty tannins. Best from late 2025 through 2033. 93

Domaine-Thomson Surveyor Thomson Pinot Noir 2022 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. A lovely bouquet and palate with a core of red berries and sweet plums, raspberry and roses. There's a fleshy mouthfeel at first then as the tannins and acidity dial in the texture changes to add a mild tautness and acid line carries the flavours through the palate well. Medium+ length, lighter weighted and with some elegance. Well-made and thoughtful with best drinking from 2025 through 2033+. 94

Mount Edward Pisa Terrace Pinot Noir 2021 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Ripe and varietal, fruity and new, there's a fine savoury quality and a touch of dried herb framing the fruit and bouquet overall. Dry and new with flavours that reflect the bouquet, some plum and cranberry flavours then some polished chalky tannins and plenty of youthful acidity adds freshness. A lighter weighted expression with plenty of flavours and texture, still bringing all the seams together with best drinking from 2026 through 2034. 93

Wooing Tree Pinot Noir 2020 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. A lovely bouquet with some mystery and style, fragrances and impact from site and soil, savoury and dry, complex and enticing. Lengthy, complex and delicious with polished tannins and a lovely acid line. Well-made and fabulous. Best from day of purchase through 2036+. 94

Amisfield RKV Reserve Pinot Noir 2019 Cromwell/Lowburn/Pisa. Savoury and youthful still, varietal and complex, aromas and flavours of fresh and dried raspberry, plums and layers of barrel spices, mineral and style. Dry and complex, the savoury dried herb qualities speak to the region and vintage. Decent length and complexity. Best from day of purchase through 2033. 95.

Nanny Goat Vineyard Single Vineyard Queensberry Pinot Noir 2023 Queensberry/Wanaka. Richness, complexity and power, a bouquet of muscle and style, ripe dark fruits and barrel spices. Fabulous on the palate, dry and weighty with firm message of dark fruits, black raspberries, smoky barrel and kitchen spices. Clove and vanilla, smoky wood and earth smoke layers, firm tannins and medium+ acid line. Well made, ripe and fleshy, dry and lengthy. Best from 2026 through 2034+. 95

Rippon 'Emma's Block' Mature Vine Pinot Noir 2021 Queensberry/Wanaka. Youthful, taut and complex, a wine that is still knitting together yet has the complexity and intrigue of a wine well-made and attention to detail. Delicious, a reflection of site, vintage and producer style. An abundance of tannins and acidity frame the palate of fruits and soil messages, use of barrel and wait time needed to bring this wine to its window of pleasure. Best drinking from 2028 through 2038. 95

Rippon Pinot Noir 2021 Queensberry/Wanaka. Youthful and taut, an expression of site and soil, slightly darker fruited though a little more mystery and personality. Dry and firm with ripe tannins in abundance, plenty of acidity and mouthfeel, length and intrigue. Dried cherry and plums, some raspberry and fresh cherry fruit flavour suggestions, chalky textured tannins, lots of length and complexity. Best from 2028 through 2038. 95

Rippon 'Tinker's Field' Mature Vine Pinot Noir 2021 Queensberry/Wanaka. Just a touch of development with slightly drier fruit aromas and completeness. That said there‘s a firm grip and plenty of development left to be undertaken as this wine still shows firmness and dried herb qualities then red berry fruits and soil ideas. Well-made and gets better as the wine opens pout on the palate. Lengthy and well made, some mystery and lots of style. 94

Moko Hills Pinot Noir 2023 Bendigo/Tarras. Plush, ripe, youthful and fleshy bouquet with aromas of black currant and sunbaked cherry, layer sof mineral and new oak, some lighter savoury spice and dried herb qualities all layering in complexity and style, shape and form. Palate flavours reflect the bouquet with an abundance of tannins and acidity to frame the wine rather well. Juicy, fleshy and delicious with best drinking from 2026 through 2033+. 95

Mondillo Pinot Noir 2023 Bendigo/Tarras. A nicely complex bouquet with aromas of soil and barrel spices, ripe red berry fruits and layers of strawberry and plum. Fresh and juicy fruit flavours, ripe acidity and some sweeter oak inputs deliver a wine of texture and mouthfeel, complexity and definitive style. A dry wine with plenty of tautness from tannins and acidity yet also plushness. Lengthy and well made with best drinking from 2027 through 2037. 94

Moko Hills Kakano Pinot Noir 2023 Bendigo/Tarras. Varietal and enticing with a bouquet of flowers and fresh red berries, layers of barrel sweetness and nut, some reductive highlights and mineral earth qualities. Firm and dry with a rush of flavours to reflect the bouquet, an abundance of polished tannins and backbone of acidity. Well made, lengthy and developing complexities. Best drinking from 2028 through 2038. 95

Mt Difficulty Ghost Town Bendigo Pinot Noir 2023 Bendigo/Tarras. Ripe, and very fruity, varietal and new, some floral highlights and earthy tones to match then a savoury complexity with some age and dried thyme qualities. The use of barrel adds some smoke and reductive flintiness as well as complexity and energy. Dry, taut, plenty of firm tannins, length and complexity. A lovely example, very new and darker fruited expression. Best from 2028 through 2038. 94

Loop Road Pinot Noir 2023 Bendigo/Tarras

A very good bouquet with a newer, almost raw freshness, youth and power. Flavours suggest raspberry and plum, roses and dried herbs, a finer flinty mineral quality and savoury complexity. Dry, firm taut and high energy on the palate. Flavours reflect the bouquet, firm ripe tannins and backbone of acidity. Well made, lengthy and still very new, needing some development time with best drinking from 2027 through 2037. 94

Valli Bendigo Vineyard Pinot Noir 2023 Bendigo/Tarras. Very youthful bouquet filled with aromas and flavours of dark plums and baked raspberry, there's a definitive dried herb and fine savoury complexity, some sweetness of barrel and yellow clay and stone earthy qualities. Tautness and youthful squeeze on the palate showcases the impact of fruit and wood tannins then cool climate acidity. Well-made and very new still with best drinking likely from 2028 through 2038+. 95

Prophet's Rock Olearia Pinot Noir 2022 Bendigo/Tarras. Although the bouquet suggests a young wine, and it is, there's a sense of older vines and natural harmony that could only come from a happy vineyard. Flavours of raspberry and plum, sweet floral, gently spiced barrel harmony. Firm and dry as the wine touches the palate with flavours of berries and sweetness from wood and alcohol then textures from tannins and acidity framing the palate well. Lengthy and quite delicious with best drinking from 2028 through 2039. 96

Quartz Reef Bendigo Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 Bendigo/Tarras. A riper, warm and generous style of PN from the region, some dark berries with a sweet cherry quality, some sweetness from alcohol and wood accentuated from medium+ acidity and selection of wood. Some fleshy and juicy qualities, well made with moderate to firm tannins and medium length. Best from 2026 through 2031. 93+

Prophet's Rock Home Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 Bendigo/Tarras. A classic expression with a mix of savoury spices and ripe red berry fruit, there's some dark skinned cherry and plum framed by medium tannin levels and plenty of acidity and delicate spice layers. Well made, fruity and balanced with best drinking from late 2026 through 2034. 93

Prophet's Rock Cuvée Aux Antipodes Pinot Noir 021 Bendigo/Tarras. A lovely expression with weight and texture first then a ripeness of fruits and layers of savoury fruit spices framed by tannins and acidity. I really like the mouthfeel and core fruit flavours, there's some earthy stone qualities with suggestions of dried boysenberry and plum then cherry and dark red apple skin memories. Firm and quite dry with contrasting core fruit flavours. A wine I feel just needs some time for the seas of harmony and energy to settle in. Drinking window from 2028 through 2035+.94

Maori Point Grand Reserve Professors’ Block Pinot Noir 2020 Bendigo/Tarras. Very plush and ripe with an instant salivation and detection of core fruit ripeness ad flavour. Dark cherries and plums, some sweet oak and barrel spices then sweetness adding to the mouthfeel and richness on the palate. Plush, ripe and dry, salivating and delicious. Best drinking from 2028 through 2038. Lengthy some tautness and lots of promise. 94

Quartz Reef Bendigo Single Ferment Pinot Noir2020 Bendigo/Tarras. Some development scents in the bouquet with a slightly direr cherry and plum suggestions. The same for the palate with alcohol and firmer tannins squeezing the palate nicely though also accentuating the direr fruit spectrum. Well made with a natural food friendly quality. Best from day of purchase through 2028. 94

Prophet's Rock Retrospect Pinot Noir 2019 Bendigo/Tarras. Developing and enticing, firm, savoury and dry. A wine that seems ready though also has the frame to mature with some firmer tannins and acidity carrying the core flavours and style. Drying red berry fruits, some youthful fresher layers too. Overall, well made with firmer and developing lengthy finish. Best drinking from day of purchase through 2029. 92+

Rockburn Seven Barrels Pinot Noir 2023 Gibbston. Plush, ripe, fruity and very enticing bouquet with a natural fruit sweetness of plums and cherries, there's some fresh and dried raspberry all framed by a core of mineral and stony earth qualities. Dry, plenty of elegance and style with a youthful energy and sweetness, an abundance of fine tannins and acid line to match. A delightful wine to taste and enjoy with best drinking from 2027 through 2037. 94

Valli Gibbston Vineyard Pinot Noir 2023 Gibbston. A bouquet that has captured the sense of site and region with a nice balance of soil and fruit, lees and barrel spice, then flavours cherries and plums. On the palate a dry wine with textures from tannins and acidity framing the core fruit flavours that mirror the bouquet. An intriguing wine also with a fine savoury and earthy complexity. Well-made and only just on the development phase now that its had a year in bottle. Best drinking from 2027 through 2037. 93+

Brennan Wines B2 Pinot Noir 2022 Gibbston. The bouquet and palate suggest a wine that has settles into the next and early phase of development with a nice harmony between fruits and barrels spices, the regional tick of savoury dried herb qualities and site. As the wine touches the palate the sense of complexity, energy and completeness unfurl and captivate the senses. Delicious, fresh and dry, polished tannins and core complexity that just keeps speaking. Well-made and very lengthy with best drinking from 2025 through 2035++. 94

Coal Pit Tiwha Pinot Noir 2022 Gibbston. Excellent bouquet and style with a core of place and definitive style showcasing savoury spices and plum, dried raspberry and earthy qualities. Firm yet finer tannins profile and backbone of acidity lead into flavours that mirror the bouquet. Well made, youthful and settled into this stage of maturing in a hold pattern for now. Well-made and lengthy with a raw energy appeal, decent oak and lengthy finish. Best from 2027 through 2037. 95

Nanny Goat Vineyard Super Nanny Pinot Noir 2023 Blend. Delicious, savoury and raw, intriguing and new. There's a bold statement, perhaps even proud of the soil and site with a natural savoury complexity and earthy statement first. Then the fruits layer in their voice of youth and power. A dry wine with a firm expression, tannins and acidity leading the taster into the fruit flavours of strawberry and crisp dark cherry. Then the flavours of fruits and tension, poise and length. An intriguing wine, a delicious wine , a youthful wine. Best from 2027 through 2037+. 94

Mount Edward 'Big Ted' Pinot Noir 2023 Blend. Instant finesse and charm, complexity and mystery, a bouquet that urges me to think more about site and time, season and style. Flavours of cherry and dried raspberry, sweet soil and judicious use of oak. Satin touches then firmness from tannins and acidity all pull together the flavours of red berries and fine savoury and delicate dried herb qualities. Lengthy and well made with best drinking from 2027 through 2037. 94

Nanny Goat Vineyard Pinot Noir 2023 Blend. A fine wine, framed by the scents of dried herbs and ripe berry fruits, there's a definitive sense of place here with a compact soil quality and core of ripe red berry fruits. Dry, sensual and enticing with flavours that reflect the bouquet, an abundance of fine tannins and backbone of acidity. Fresh, complex and new. best from 2028 through 2038+. 94

Monte Christo Winery Pinot Noir 2023 Blend. Varietal with a core of fruit then some savoury qualities then some poise and finesse from the oak. Salivating and new, there's a saline quality just before the fruit and spices of barrel begin to take over. The idea of poise and even pause as the wine engages the palate more with a freshness and gentle sweetness of fruit engages the senses. Some firmer tannins are ripe, plenty of acidity and freshness leading to a lengthy finish. Best from 2028/9 through 2038/9. 95

Rockburn Wines Pinot Noir 2023 Blend. A very engaging bouquet with a mix of fresh red berries and plums with the savoury sweetness of oak and place, dried herbs and hay, clay and stony soils then vanilla and a touch of clove from barrel. There's a cashew nut smoky quality and leesy flinty youthful energy as well. Dry and firm, locked up and needing some time in bottle. Well made with best drinking from 2028 through 2036+. 94

Te Kano Landwalker Pinot Noir 2023 Blend. A sense of site and vintage at the center of the bouquet with a soil smoke of mineral and sandy stone then core fruit scents of raspberry and plum. On the palate, a dry wine with an abundance of red berry flavours, cranberry and dried spices, a finer layer of wood smoke and flinty lees reductive moments. Dry, savoury, well-made and quite lengthy on the palate, there's a satin touch before the impact of tannins and acidity take over. Well made with best drinking from 2027 through 2037+. 95

Gibbston Valley Wines Reserve Pinot Noir 2022 Blend. A taut and very youthful wine with a savoury pause and gently earth-smoke impressions. As the wine opens out in glass the flavours of plum and dried cherry and thyme fold into the spectrum of ideas. Firm tannins and backbone of acidity frame the palate and mouthfeel with fruits emerging as the tension and structure are dissolved away. Very young still and will need some time to settle and develop. Best from 2028 through 2038. 93+

Peregrine Wines Pinot Noir 2022 Blend. A rather sleek and elegant bouquet with aromas and flavours of cherries and plums framed by an abundance of finer polished tannins and acidity. Dry and gently savoury with a lovely texture and flavours of fine wood and ripe berry fruits. Well made, complex and lengthy, a wine to enjoy from day of purchase though best from 2028 through 2038+. 95

Cloudy Bay Te Wahi Pinot Noir 2021 Blend. There's no mistaking the power and intensity in the bouquet with oak and smoke first then ripe red berry fruits of raspberry and red apple skin. The savoury cherry flavours chime in on the palate after the alcohol dies down a little and tannins dissolve. Well-made though a little alcohol warm today.  best from 2027 through 2037+. 93+

Mount Edward Pinot Noir 2021 Blend. Poise, power and elegance with a bouquet of muscle and ripe red berry fruits, layers of wood spice and earth smoke. A dry wine touches that palate then velvet tannins in a ball of fruit muscle follow. The intensity of youth and bold expression are layered on in spades. Delicious and dry, fresh, fruity and powerful style. The dried herb and savoury side of the region emerges after a while. Well made, a wine that just needs time. Best from 2020 through 2039+. 95

Felton Road Block 5 Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. A lovely ripe and enticing bouquet of CO dried cherry fruits and savoury spice highlights. Just before the wine touches the palate the scents of barrel spices and other ferment fragrances appear. Nut and smoke from earth and wood also engage the palate first then fine chalky tannins and red berry fruit flavours fold into the palate. Dry, refreshing, a touch of salinity and more fruit spices emerge. A lovely wine, balanced and well made with best drinking from 2027 through 2037+. 95

Akarua Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. Lifted warm fruity and generous bouquet with plums and preserved cherries, some spice and sweet oak layers, no mistaking the warmth of alcohol and freshness of acidity. Well made with an abundance of tannins and flavours of wood and fruit. Best from day of purchase through 2029. 92

Felton Road Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. Plump, ripe and savoury, warm and generous on the palate with a saline and red plum flavour then dark cherry and sweet nutty spices of barrel. There's a light flinty quality with a mineral edge framed by firm tannins and acidity. Tautness and length, well made with best drinking from 2027 through 2037+. 93

Akarua The Siren Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. Complexity and some lift with a bouquet of sweet barrel combined with dark plums and cherry flavours, vanilla and clove spice of oak then a darker soil stony quality. A dry wine on the palate with a backbone of oak then acidity followed by flavours of dark berries and roasted stone fruits. Power and style with best drinking from 2026 through 2034. 93

Felton Road MacMuir Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. A classic style of PN with the savoury dried herb signature of the region then aromas and flavours of dark plums and cherries, clove and smoky barrel spice qualities. Firm tannins and a taut poise on the palate show that this wine needs some time to relax and develop. Fruit and wood flavours repeat leading to moderate+ length and complexity. Best from 2028 through 2035. 94+

Mt Difficulty Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. A lifted slightly VA led bouquet, aromas and flavours of red berries and some plum, then some savoury spice qualities of site and region. Warm and generous on the palate too with some fine through coarse silk cut tannins and higher acidity mean this wine will age and develop throughout the next few years. Best drinking from 2027 through 20235+. 93

Felton Road Block 3 Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. A sophisticated bouquet of elegance and style, then red berry fruits and poise then a release and finesse style with some spices of barrel and floral tones, an earthy quality and saline mineral tones. Delicious, fresh and dry with an abundance of firm tannins and acidity. A continued elegance and poise with velvet mouthfeel and length fruit led finish. Best from 2027 through 2037+. 96

Felton Road Cornish Point Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. Soft fruited and new, ripe and silky frame to the bouquet. Dry and quite delicious, a tad warmer than expected though also fresh and new. Firm tannins have polish and as well as power. Dark cherry and myriad berry fruit flavours then sweetness and toastiness of wood. A lovely wine with a readiness to drink from 2027 through 2037. 95

Valli Bannockburn Vineyard Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. Fantastic bouquet with a plush and elegance then ripe fruit scents of baked raspberry and  boysenberry. Sweet oak layers the dark rose and clove spice layers. Dry on the palate with a core of ripe red berry fruit, fine tannins in abundance and acid line for length and freshness. Well-made and delicious, a drink now and age worthy example with best drinking from 2027 through 2037+. 95

Felton Road Calvert Pinot Noir 2023 Bannockburn. A mineral, savory and site reflected bouquet, smoke and spices of earth and oak lead to flavours of plum and raspberry, dark plum and judicious use of oak. Well made, dry, savoury and taut. Firm tannins and plenty of acidity carry the flavours reflective of the bouquet. Well-made and dry needing some cellar time to make its mark with harmony and style. Best from 2028 through 2038. 95

Carrick Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2022 Bannockburn. An ever so slightly muted bouquet, I think this only because the wine is in a developmental stage and focusing on the next step. Aromas and flavours of plums and darker berries, some savoury components and firm tannins lead to fruit and wood flavours that reflect the bouquet. Firm and dry with best drinking from 2028 through 2037. 93

Chard Farm Hawkesburn Vineyard 2022 Bannockburn. A bouquet of elegance and primary fruits scents then soil and finesse from some dried herb and savoury spice highlights. Fine tannins are in abundance with a backbone of acidity and soil smoke of clay and stone. Cherry and plum, some dried herb and savoury qualities, then dried rose and clove. A wine that will surely develop even more complexities and settle into its style over the next could of years. Best from 2027 through 2037. 94

Dicey Pinot Noir 2022 Bannockburn. Dark red berries and savoury spices, fried thyme and sage lead to a palate of cherries and plums, sweet raspberry then oak and soil flavours of slate and stone. An abundance of polished tannins and gentle herbaceous qualities, wood smoke and earth. A lovely expression with tautness and texture, fruit and elegance. Best drinking from 2026 through 2036. 94

Calvert Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2021 Bannockburn. Classic CO notes in the bouquet with dark cherry and plums, thyme and a core of savoury earthy qualities. Dry, taut, balanced and well made with flavours of raspberry and plum, A finesse and fine elegance, fabulous fruit and length. Plush and salivating, lengthy and fine, a wine that coats the palate with silky yet firm tannins and ripe acidity. well made with best drinking from 2028 through 2038. 95

Doctors Flat Pinot Noir 2021 Bannockburn. Ripe, fruity bouquet with muscle and power, dark fruit of plum and baked raspberry, a savoury thyme quality and backbone of earthiness. On the palate a slightly warmer wine than expected yet the core of fruit and firmness of youth hold. Dry, well-made and not yet ready with best drinking from 2027 through 2037. 93+

Mount Edward Muirkirk Vineyard Pinot Noir 2021 Bannockburn. Plush a with a floral side and gently sweeter oak side. Ripe, fruity and holding some elegance. Firm and dry with an abundance polished tannins then acidity then fruit flavours of dark cherry and plum, some boysenberry and barrel spice combinations. Tannins and acidity pull this expression together in a tight hold that is likely to remain for some time. Best drinking from 2028 through 2038+. 94