If we believe the statistics, the vast majority of wine purchased is opened within the week, so drinkability off the bat is imperative, but it is also nice to know that rewards await if you have the patience to tuck wines away!
2024 Maude Poison Creek Central Otago Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent
Attractive nose, spice
notes lead, raspberry
to the fore, smoke
and graphite, dusty
gravels. Brimming
with fruit, raspberry
again, perhaps a little
redcurrant, interplay
between spice and
herb, good structure
in support. Youthful,
bold and bright yet
plays the medium-
weight card so nicely,
already in good form,
potential too as it puts
on weight. Lovely
aromatics, so
Central.
2024 Monte Christo Bannockburn Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent to outstanding
Darker fruits jostle
with florality, a
brooding quality, hints
of marmitey umami. A
sense of tautnesss
and tension, darker
fruits, stony nuances,
ripe fruit yet drier
through the palate as
the tannins get into
gear. Lip-smacking
with attractive
chewiness on the
close. A juicy, almost
crunchy quality, lively,
great balance, long
finish, speaks of
potential but already
very engaging.
2022 Dicey Bannockburn Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent
More driven by florality
than fruit, subtlety yet
beguiling. Hints of
development, gentle
earthy/mushroomy/
forest floor hints, spice
notes building with air.
If you’re seeking a
ballsy fruit bomb, look
away, this is all about
pinosity and
refinement. Dried
strawberry and red
berries on the nose
now, spices, the
palate growing with air
yet this is still more
about elegance rather
than heft.
2023 Gibbston Valley China Terrace Bendigo Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent to outstanding
Savoury/umami
elements leap from
the glass, dusty
minerality, brooding
initially, as it takes
on air rose petal
florals, mixed red
and dark fruits.
Blueberry, perhaps
plum, savoury
nuances, graphite, a
fine acid line and a
long, long dry close
as the tannins get to
work. Deceptive
power under the
hood here, this is
complex and very
nicely assured.
2022 Doctors Flat Bannockburn Pinot Noir
Rating Outstanding
Powerful nose, a
fascinating sense of
wildness, flecks of
humus and tilled earth,
smoke, savoury
nuances, wild herb,
more about overall
complexity than the
fruit. Darker fruits more
evident on the palate,
great acidity and tannic
grip, neatly combines
complexity, potential
and yet drinkability. A
more burgundian nose
than Central, now wild
rose. Layers of flavour,
super stuff that begs
another glass.
2024 Maude Mohawk Hill Central Otago Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent
Fruit pastille, rose
petal, almost hinting
at turkish delight,
dusty, spices a touch
of oak char, pencil
lead/tar. Raspberry,
raspberry, raspberry,
then touches of wild
strawberry, fruits of
the forest. The fruit is
the signature for now
accentuating its
youthful side, yet
there’s structure to
burn. Revelling in its
youth, the nose now
tightens a little, drink
now for the fruit or
hold for complexity.
2024 Monte Christo Alexandra Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent
Primal, initially all about
the whole, air teases
out the nuances, darker
fruits, ink, umami
aspects, florality, wild
rose, it all starts
coming in waves,
drawing you back for
more. A crunchy, fresh,
zesty quality to the
palate, berry fruits
more to the fore now,
tar and earthy aspects
joining in, with good
structured and
backbone. Fruit
sweetness more
evident now, yet still
dry on the close.
2023 Domaine Thomson Surveyor Thomson Central Otago Pinot Noir
Rating Excellent to outstanding
A touch of funk/
wildness, moving to
savoury, spice and wild
herb notes, the fruit in
support, florality now.
The darker fruits are
there on the palate, the
foundation for the
acidity and powerful
tannins, there’s real
structure here crying
out for time, or robust
food now. As it takes on
air there’s humus and
florality, red fruits and
herb, the powerfully
chewy structure
showing its intent.
