Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The clear and swirling whole-bunch aromatics here are really charming and bursting with attractive and complex pinot perfumes such as rose petals, sweet spices and bright red-tinged berry fruits. The palate has handy definition, light and shade, powerful yet reserved detail and long tannins that run in unison through a very focused, juicy and punchy crisp finish. I love this wine for its elegance and power; it's great pinot at its finest. Best from 2018.
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Wine Enthusiast
Plummy yet cool, with a greenish, floral note that adds lift and interest to the dark-fruit aromas and flavors. This is a bit austere and dusty, but long on the finish, so drink 2018–2030.
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Wine Spectator
Juicy and vibrant, with cherry, raspberry and pomegranate flavors and an earthy, firm edge. Features aromatic accents of dried lavender, nutmeg and fresh tomato leaf. Drink now through 2026.
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.”
Part of the Wairarapa region in the southern end of the country’s North Island, Martinborough is a bucolic appellation full of artisan, lifestyle wine producers. Above all else, their goals are to tend vineyards for low yields and create wines of supreme quality. Pinot noir is the main grape variety here, occupying over half of the land under vine.
Comparing topography, climate and soils, the region is nearly identical to Marlborough except that it produces top quality reds on the regular.