Loveblock Pinot Noir 2018
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#46 Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2019
Crimson with purple hues. Ripe black cherry with smoky notes and hints of mushroom peeking out behind rich fruit. Fleshy black plum, with layers of cherry and sweet berries that play on the palate and dance with notes of violet.
Dry tannins and hints of cigar make this a versatile wine to pair with turkey, salmon, lamb and beef.
Estate Grown. Sustainably Farmed. Vegan.
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This displays an impressive presence, smooth and succulent, with vibrant cherry, raspberry and apricot notes and touches of white pepper, anise seed and toasted cumin. The texture is smooth, with firm tannins that add an appealing traction on the finish. Drink now through 2033.
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While this organically farmed Pinot isn’t as fruit forward as previous vintages, it makes up for it with an abundance of fresh herbs: thyme, rosemary and fennel seeds, with some leafy secondary characters and red-berry fruit in the mix too. Mouthwatering acidity and crunchy fruit are balanced by sandy tannins. Drink this light-bodied bottle a little chilled, with a summer meal seasoned with the same freshly plucked herbs as the nose suggests.
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Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Home to the globe’s most southerly vineyards, which are cultivated below the 45th parallel, Central Otago is a true one-of-a-kind wine growing region, but not only because of its extreme location.
Central Otago is more dependent on one single variety than any other region in New Zealand—and it isn’t Sauvignon blanc. They don’t even make Sauvignon blanc there.
Pinot Noir claims nearly 75% of the region’s vineyards with Pinot Gris coming in a far second place and Riesling behind it. This is also New Zealand’s only wine region with a continental climate, giving it more diurnal and seasonal temperature shifts than any other.
The subregion of Bannockburn has enjoyed the most success historically but the area’s exceptional growth has moved to the promising regions of Cromwell/Bendigo and Alexandra districts. Central Otago is known for its fruity and full-bodied Pinot noir. With the freedom to experiment here, growers and winemakers are easily exhibiting the area’s great potential.