Dog Point Vineyard, Pinot Noir Marlborough 2017

96 points Bob Campbell
"It’s intensely aromatic on the nose showing passionfruit, feijoa, Granny Smith apple and lemon peel characters. The palate delivers excellent fruit power and persistency backed by refreshing acidity, making it delectable and highly enjoyable."

95 points James Suckling
"This is very convincing, complex and downright impressive pinot noir. The intense aromas of ripe cherries and plums are framed in such intensely attractive oak spice and earthy, sous-bois complexity. The palate has regal, polished and powerful tannin and carries a vibrant core of very attractive, rich dark cherries."

93 points Allen Meadows, Burghound
"This is sufficiently reduced to benefit from a quick decanting of 15 minutes or so. After the aeration the nose grudgingly reveals aromas of poached plum, dark currant and plenty of floral elements. There is excellent volume to the very rich and seductively textured medium-bodied flavors that possesses caressing mid-palate that contrasts somewhat with the powerful, robust and impressively long finale. This is a decidedly bold and very much built-to-age effort that isn’t elegant, in fact it’s borderline rustic, but it should age for a very long time. Fans of power pinot will love this."

Jancis Robinson
"Mid healthy garnet. Relatively complex savoury burgundian(?) nose. Sweet palate entry but not sickly. Really satisfying – fresh and fruity but with depths that suggest it will age quite well. Lovely balance. Côte de Beaune not Côte de Nuits (sorry for these French similes). Violet flavours and long. Yummy. 17.5/20 points."

Vinous Reverie Notes
Winery: Comprising six different pinot noir clones from vines dating back to 1983. Vines are cropped at 5 tonnes/ha (35hl/ha), hand harvested and hand sorted, prior to de-stemming (25% whole bunch included). The fruit is fermented in small stainless open top fermenters without pumping. Fermentation is conducted by indigenous yeasts over a period of 2-3 weeks prior to pressing into French oak barrels (30% new) for 18 months. Tasting Notes: A bright perfumed, supple expression of Marlborough pinot noir from clay hill slopes. The fruit is supported by bright florals of rose and violets with crunchy red berry fruit and dried herb notes. The palate is succulent with alluring red cherry, brown spices and silky fine boned tannins. This wine has all the makings of a long lived Marlborough pinot noir and matches perfectly with duck, red meats (particularly venison and lamb), and mushroom dishes.