Felton Road Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2017
Power and tension. Silky entry of spice and savoury notes expand to pure, deep fruits braced with acidity, but luscious throughout. Intricate and detailed with a strong sense of longevity.
| Optimum Drinking | 2020-2028 |
|---|---|
| Winemaker | Blair Walter |
| Organic | No |
| Reviewer Score | 95 |
| Reviewer | Bob Campbell MW |
| SKU | 300398 |
Felton Road's 2017 Bannockburn Pinot Noir is a great introduction to the estate's wonderful Pinots, redolent of the great Bannockburn sub-region - bright and powerful, with dark fruits and spice.
The 2017 Pinot yields from four of Felton Road's vineyards: Cornish Point, Calvert, MacMuir and The Elms. It was aged for 13 months in (22% new) French oak barrels from artisan Burgundian coopers, and in accordance with Felton Road's non-interventionalist approach, was neither fined nor filtered.
Felton Road is situated on warm, north-facing slopes of Bannockburn in Central Otago; a modern gravity fed winery which crafts high quality single varietal wines from 100% estate grown fruit from its three vineyards that are all farmed biodynamically (fully certified by Demeter) under winemaker Blair Walter and English-born owner Nigel Greening. Felton Road employs minimal intervention in the winemaking to allow the unique vineyard characters to shine through. Felton Road has a prestigious worldwide reputation.
"The 2017 Bannockburn Pinot Noir has a lovely, understated bouquet with blackberry and briary aromas and a subtle earthy/forest floor note loitering in the wings. The palate is well balanced with fine tannin and gentle grip in the mouth, but nothing overly powerful. It is a "natural" Pinot Noir leaning towards a broodier style, yet clearly very well made and expressive of its terroir. Excellent." Neal Martin
"Aromatic pinot noir with spice, plum and violet aromas that are joined by liquorice, prune and subtle nutty oak on the palate. Dense, intense wine with strong sweet fruit restrained by subtle tannins. A rich, almost chewy wine, with impressive underlying power. Best served slightly chilled to temper fruit sweetness." Bob Campbell MW