Tolpuddle Pinot Noir

Tolpuddle Vineyard was established in 1988 and it took its name from the Tolpuddle Martyrs: English convicts transported to Tasmania for forming an agricultural union. The leader of the Martyrs, George Loveless, served some of his sentence working on a property near Richmond, part of which is now Tolpuddle Vineyard. The vineyard is planted with mature Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines, facing north-east, and sloping gently up from Back Tea Tree Road. The soil is light silica over sandstone and of moderate vigour, ensuring well-balanced vines producing grapes of great flavour and intensity.

This is a wine we have not yet seen from Tolpuddle. It has such well-curated complexity and whole-bunch influence (40%) sits in the sweet spot. It is concentrated, yet so elegant and the vivid freshness that pervades every aspect of the nose and palate is striking. A longer, cooler vintage has allowed the sum of all the distinctive site components to marry in ideal balance. Riffing off the same playbook as the excellent 2020 Pinot Noir, this 2021 Pinot Noir is fine, floral, mineral, structured

and if possible, a little more structured and perfect than the 2020. It captures a ductile flow of tannin that shapes the fruit, capturing a glistening display of perfectly ripe, restrained fruit. Together, it makes for a polished, scintillating wine. Exceptional.

Decanter: 98Pts; Wine Advocate: 96Pts; James Suckling: 95Pts; Jancis Robinson: 17.5/20Pts