““Serré, planted in 1984 and extended in 1986, certified organic in 2021, is planted to 1.2m x 1.2m vine spacing, MV6 clone Pinot Noir on own roots.” Hand picked, “completely destemmed, and fermented on skins for 10 days, before pressing to French oak hogshead barrels of which 33% was new.” I had a sneaky glass of this the night before I was due to formally taste it, which might sound like a free ride for the wine but often turns out to be the opposite; when I’m on the hunt for a “likely contender” I often go through a handful of bottles before finding one that lives up to the expectation. This is no such wine; I was hooked from the first sip.
This is autumnal and sinewy and savoury and spiced, but it’s also sleek, harmonious and settled. It just feels right. It bursts onto the palate with red cherries, rhubarb, tangerine and strawberry, with inlays of dried leaves, pepper and smoked cedarwood, but it’s the soft-firm of the finish, and the way it seems to both dry and expand at once, and the way the juices keep flowing and fanning, that really mark its quality. This will be released in August 2024. It’s a top release, and it will mature beautifully. 95+pts.”
Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
