Port Phillip Estate Balnarring Pinot Noir 2019

Description

Port Phillip Estate is a specialist Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir producer located on the Mornington Peninsula, one of Australia’s foremost cool-climate maritime wine regions. Meticulous sustainable viticulture and
sensitive minimalist winemaking produce site-expressive wines of elegance, complexity and structure. Port Phillip Estate wines are domain grown, vinified and bottled.

“We endeavour to grow the highest quality fruit that expresses the terroir of each vineyard. Our sustainable farming practices are driven by the belief that the health of our vineyard soils, and thus vines, underpin wine quality. 

All grapes are hand pruned, shoot thinned and hand picked.” Winemaker Glen Hayley

“Since becoming chief winemaker at Port Phillip Estate a few years ago, Glen Hayley has taken the estate’s already good wines to new levels of quality and detail.” Max Allen

Notes from the winery:

Notes from the winery about this vintage: “Now in its eighth year, this wine represents the exploration of our second site, located in Balnarring. This vineyard, planted to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, was acquired in 2007 but originally established in 1997. The original plantings comprise two distinct areas of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. A third area has been planted to Pinot Noir, exploiting the higher-density planting matrix found throughout the Pinot Noir growing regions of the Old World.

This wine was fermented in an open-top stainless-steel tank. Fermentation commenced spontaneously with ambient yeasts, included a portion of whole bunches and lasted 16 days. Following fermentation, the wine was pressed and racked into French oak barriques (18% of which were new) and underwent indigenous malolactic fermentation. The wine was racked only for bottling, with a total maturation period of 11 months. It was bottled without fining and with minimal filtration.

The nose presents a complex and attractive combination of aromas; red citrus, violet and red cherry together with spicy whole-bunch notes. There is delicious sappiness to the mid-palate that is complemented by fine, dusty tannins. The fruit-driven finish makes this approachable and drinkable now, although it will happily reward medium-term cellaring.13.5%”

94 points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front “This opens taut, savoury and complex but as it breathes the fruit seems sweeter and fuller. It seems serious and stern at first; generous to the point of deliciousness in time. That said, a healthy amount of spice and twig-like notes remain heightened throughout and its tannin never really lets go of the reins. In short, it’s a joyous Pinot Noir with substance. It works now and it will also work if you wait.”

95 points, Huon Hooke, The Real Review “The colour is a bright, deepish red with a good tint of purple, the bouquet superbly complex and perfumed, with whole-bunchy ‘forest floor’ bass notes overlying sweet cherry, strawberry perfumes and a hint of violets. It’s a gorgeous wine: medium-bodied and intense, with long-lingering flavour and persistent fine-grained tannins.”

RRP $47  Last of the vintage Limited