Winemaker Allan Johnson aims for a “ripe, full and rich” Pinot Noir. In recent years the wines have won many accolades. Most recently the 2000 vintage won the Winestate Pinot Noir of the year in 2002 and the 2001 vintage was awarded the only New Zealand gold medal at the 2003 London International Wine Challenge.
This wine is made from a blend of older own rooted 10/5 Pinot Noir vines and newer plantings of the Dijon clones 115 and 667. The grapes were allowed to fully ripen to deliver fruit with intense flavours and smooth tannins. The grapes were fermented in traditionally styled open fermentation tanks and the wine aged in French oak casks for 12 months.
"Deep red colour. Ripe concentrated red and dark berry fruits with ripe plum aromas, a touch of leather and toasty oak. Soft full and long flavour with intense sweet-ripe fruit and tannins in a focused structure. Soft lingering finish with long flavour length. A beautiful wine. Big, plush colour. Bold and youthful aroma loaded with complex fruit, spice and vanilla oak. Palate is still very firm and youthful but rich and concentrated and showing remarkable depth of flavour. The complexity is lovely. Tannins here are abundant yet well proportioned and the palate is very long, finishing with a mineral freshness to the acidity". WineNZ, Winter 2007
