Giesen Vineyard Selection Pinot Noir

Giesen Vineyard Selection Pinot Noir draws fruit from across Marlborough's Wairau and Awatere Valleys, blended together for a Pinot that's consistently bright and elegant rather than chasing one single vineyard's character. The 2022 vintage benefited from a smooth, wet start to the season and a long, cool ripening period that locked in acidity and flavour, giving red cherry, bramble and lifted florals with a savoury spice note. Gentle skin-contact fermentation and careful yeast selection keep the tannins soft and the colour bright, and six months on fine lees add a touch of natural sweetness and texture. Silky, supple and easy to like, it's built for weeknight duck or roast pork rather than serious cellaring.

What the winery says:

Fruit for this Pinot Noir comes from across Marlborough's Wairau and Awatere Valleys. The 2022 season had a wet winter and spring, with settled weather through flowering helping fruit set, then warm summer temperatures and a cooler February and March slowed ripening down - good news for flavour development and acid retention - before a cool early autumn let the team pick ahead of the usual timeline. At the winery, fruit was crushed and cold-soaked for four to six days, then fermented on skins for 16 to 29 days using yeasts chosen to stabilise colour and lift flavour, with gentle handling to avoid over-extracting tannin. The wine was aged on fine lees for six months to build natural sweetness and texture. It comes in at 12.5% ABV, pH 3.62, TA 5.77g/L and RS 2.2g/L, and Giesen suggests pairing it with Peking duck pancakes, hoisin sauce and Asian greens.

What the experts say:

Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, 91 Points (2022 Vintage)
"It's sweetly fragrant on the nose displaying dark cherry, floral, spice and subtle nutty characters. The palate is succulent and nicely weighted with smooth texture and supple tannins. A beautifully ripe and very likeable pinot."