W L
Mac Forbes ‘ Coldstream ’ Pinot Noir ( 2016 ) – this comes from the Yarra Valley , Victoria in Australia . Ruby in colour . Beautiful perfume in the glass . Again red berries are to the fore on the palate - cherries , redcurrants and cranberries . You also get some floral and herbal notes in a wine that has a pure , clean and lingering finish . I found this wine at around the £ 29 a bottle mark a while ago . The 2016 vintage is now on sale at around the £ 35 a bottle mark and the 2017 vintage at around the £ 36 a bottle mark .
Tolpuddle Vineyard Pinot Noir ( 2018 ) – here we pay a visit to the Coal River Valley in Tasmania . This is another elegant wine with cherry , red currant , stony minerality , dried florals , raspberry , rose , spices and a distinctive umami note . It is mid weight , silky , clean and pure . It has wonderful poise and great complexity . This retails at around the £ 50 a bottle mark .
The Hilt ‘ Vanguard ’ Pinot Noir ( 2014 ) – this comes from Santa Barbara County , Central Coast in California . This is a sumptuous wine with soft fruit , lovely silky tannins and a beautiful but not overpowering sweetness . It is a bright ruby coloured wine . On the nose and palate you get red fruit – blackberry , raspberry , plum and cherry . A touch of herb . It is seductive . I have given this wine to many of my friends over the years ( different vintages ) and all have been stunned by the wine . This will set you back some £ 40 - £ 50 a bottle , depending on vintage , but is worth every penny .
Moorooduc Estate ‘ McIntyre ’ Pinot Noir ( 2015 ) – from the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria , Australia . Another great wine which is clear ruby in colour . The fruit is , again , pure and has a sweet dimension to it – cherry , blackberry , strawberries , red currants and cranberries . A bit of spice and firm but balanced tannins . This is both fragrant and intense at the same time . Another splendid wine with elegance and a long lingering finish . You may find the 2015 somewhere ; but other later vintages are now available at around £ 45 a bottle .
Resonance Pinot Noir ( 2018 ) – from the great Willamette Valley in Oregon . Having tasted many Pinots from this valley , I wouldn ’ t hesitate in buying any wine from the region whenever I see it . A beautiful ruby colour , and a complex nose , with notes of black cherry , blackberry , wild strawberry , peony , liquorice , graphite and delicate wood flagrance . On the palate you get a vibrant , expressive , harmonious and complex wine with great acidity and structure . Another great wine at around £ 27.50 a bottle .
Langua Franca ‘ AVNI ’ Pinot Noir ( 2018 ) – another fabulous wine , from a fabulous winery , in the Willamette Valley , in Oregon . Blueberries , blackberries , redcurrants , cranberries and a touch of violets . This is a wonderfully harmonious , seductive and slightly hedonistic wine . It is hugely refreshing on the palate with beautiful expressions of rose petal , wet stone , black plum , red cherry along with savoury elements . It is vibrant and fresh and great value at around £ 34 / 35 a bottle .
Felton Road ‘ Calvert ’ Pinot Noir ( 2017 ) – the Felton Road winery is iconic and , in my view ( and in the view of many others ) is one of the world ’ s best producers of Pinot noir . This is one of a number of outstanding wines from the Felton Road stable . This wine has a wonderfully perfumed nose with an abundance of floral notes , redcurrant and cranberry aromas . On the palate you get lovely fruit , intermingled with a touch of spice . This is a powerful , yet refined , wine of outstanding quality . At around £ 42 a bottle this is amazing stuff .
Felton Road ‘ Block 3 ’ Pinot Noir ( 2017 ) – the Felton road ‘ Block 3 ’ Pinot Noir , along with the Block 5 , is often difficult to find and , when you do , it is always in limited supply . This Pinot Noir , along with the Block 5 , is the wineries top and most expensive wine ( retailed at anywhere between £ 57 and £ 67 a bottle ). This wine displays power and complexity . You get crushed herbs , spices , leather , black cherry , raspberry and even a hint of chocolate . Currently it is almost too youthful and will take a number of years to properly open up and come alive . Even now , though , it is a wonderful wine …. But it will get better and better as the years go by . You can already tell it will be an opulent and harmonious wine .
The wines reviewed in this article can be hard to find , predominantly as they are in such high demand and are often snapped up early . Whilst they may seem pricey , they do hold their own , in terms of price , when compared with other great fine wines from around the world and the prices they fetch . Ultimately , in life , you get what you pay for !
Even if you don ’ t go for any of the wines reviewed , do have a good look for wines from the regions I have mentioned – the cool coastal Pinots from the Cape in South Africa and from California , from the Mornington Peninsula , Tasmania and the Yarra Valley in Australia , from the great Willamette Valley in Oregon and from Martinborough and Central Otago in New Zealand . I would be surprised if you ended up being disappointed .
Finally a tip . If you want to look for any of the wines reviewed in this article , or indeed search for any other particular wine , then a good tool to use is wine searcher . Go online and visit their web site ( www . wine-searcher . com ). Type in what you are looking for , and it will pull up who is selling it and link you to their web site .
The bottom line from this article ? Simple . Some Pinots really are amongst the ‘ most highly prized ’ wines in the world . The wines that feature in this month ’ s article belong to this group of wines .
To find out if you agree with this conclusion ... well , the only way is to go and try some of them for yourself . As and when you have done so - I would be surprised if you didn ’ t agree ! wirrallife . com 43