Premium Pinot Noir

2009 Two Paddocks Pinot Noir

A blend made from our three vineyards – Gibbston, Alexandra, and Redbank at Earnscleugh, this wine is a quintessential cool climate Pinot Noir.

As in the vineyard, this wine is hand crafted using traditional methods and aged in small French oak barrels for 11 months, using a mix of older and new (25%) barrels.

Winemakers Tasting Notes: Vibrant ruby color with a lifted perfumed nose, this wine exhibits dark cherry and plum fruit characters, with a concentrated herbal complexity and a distinctive lengthy savoury finish.

This wine is an equal blend from our Gibbston and Alex Paddocks vineyards. Again, each block and clone was picked and fermented separately, with the final blending taking place prior to bottling.

Vintage Comments: A vintage we are unlikely to forget! A -4 degree Celsius frost on November 7 2008, completely frosted our Redbank vineyard in Alexandra. So without a doubt it was a challenging vintage from start to finish! There was some good weather through flowering, and a positive fruit set was achieved. Most comments through the rest of the season was “What summer?”, as more than average moisture and less than average growing degree days slowed veraison and maturity. And again the dreaded frosts presented themselves again in April forcing our hand at harvest.

Harvest Dates:  Alex Paddocks – 20 April 2009, Gibbston – 29 April 2009

Viticulture: Richard Flatman & Mike Wing

Winemaker: Dean Shaw – Central Otago Wine Company

Bottled: April 2010.

Total Production: 603 cases

Release Date: April 2011

Cellaring: 2011 – 2017

Pre Release Reviews:

The ruby hued 2009 (☆☆☆☆) is supple and savoury, with good richness and complexity. Scented, it’s a mouth filling wine with deep cherry and herb flavors, vibrantly fruity and flowing. -- Michael Cooper’s Buyers Guide to New Zealand Wines 2011

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A herbal edgy cooler climate style with nice floral and spice characters. Has energy and complexity. Stylish, supple wine with cellaring potential. (☆☆☆☆ 89 points) -- Bob Campbell – www.bobswinereviews.com

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The 2009 Pinot Noir presents a medium ruby – purple and intense black cherry, game, smoked meat, loam and black truffle notes. Crisp in the mouth with a medium level of finely grained tannins, this medium bodied Pinot has good concentration and a long savoury finish. Approachable now, it should cellar to 2015. (90 points) -- The Wine Advocate – www.eRobertParker.com

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Since their debut in 1999, Hollywood A-lister and oenophile Sam Neill and winemaker Dean Shaw have fashioned a very natural, almost leafy style of Pinot Noir from their Gibbston and Alexandra valley vineyards. The wines come across as far less ostentatious than their Central Otago peers and they tend to drink perfectly at 2 – 4 years of age. -- Lisa Perrotti-Brown

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Pinot noir ruby.  This is deceptive wine, totally demonstrating the benefit of decanting all wine, and particularly newly-bottled ones.  Freshly poured, there is an unconvincing black passionfruit skins aroma,  almost hinting at decay.  Yet breathed, the wine is transformed into a complex pinot noir with roses florals grading to boronia on red and black cherry fruit.  Palate shows elegant ripeness, subtle oaking,  and unusually complex cherry flavours in which a shadow of black passionfruit lingers,  now almost attractively.  A strange one, benefit of the doubt.  Cellar 3 – 8 years. (☆☆☆☆) -- Geoff Kelly – www.geoffkellywinereviews.co.nz