Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Vibrant aromas of cherries, wild raspberries, graphite and orange peel. The palate is medium-bodied with finely integrated tannins and bright acidity, giving notes of Damson plums, wet bark, terra cotta and potpourri. Fresh and pure with a savory undertone.
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Vinous
The expressive and open-knit 2023 Pinot Noir Dixon jumps out of the glass with its red cherry, bacon fat and dried spice aromas that demand attention. It is fleshy with juicy acidity, a delicious mix of sweet cherry and savory, meaty spice, with succulent tannins to finish. Rating: 91+
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Nestled into the tip of its southeastern coastline, Victoria is Australia’s smallest mainland state, second most populous and third largest wine producer. Victoria includes the cool regions of Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and Geelong, made famous mainly by impressive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The more inland Heathcote and Bendigo lead the way for complex and textured, full-bodied reds. Rutherglen’s fortified wines compete among the best on the planet.