"A beautifully styled pinot, the inviting bouquet shows red/black cherry, raspberry, mixed spice, cedar and floral aromas, followed by a finely textured palate that is rounded and refined. The wine exhibits excellent fruit concentration and purity, wonderfully enhanced by seductive savoury undertones, making it highly attractive. At its best: now to 2021" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, January 2017

"Even, dark ruby-red colour with slight purple hues, lighter edged. The nose is softly full and voluminous with good depth of dark-red berried fruits melded with an amalgam of dark-red florals, dark herbs, earth and nutty oak elements. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegantly presented with gently juicy flavours of soft red berry fruits along with a subtle layering of dark herbs and florals. The mouthfeels shows moderate extraction with light, grainy tannin structure, and the palate is enlivened by fresh, lacy acidity. The flavours carry easily to a soft, light finish of red fruits and savoury herb notes. This is an elegant, gently sweet-fruited Pinot Noir with red berry fruits and dark herbs with light tannin structure and grip and a fresh palate. Serve with poultry and pork over the next 4-5 years. Hand-picked fruit, a mixture of 11 clones, but predominantly 667 and 777, fully destemmed and fermented to 14.0% alc., the wine aged 10 months in 25% new French oak" Raymond Chan, January 2017

"Bright and juicy, with supple, creamy tannins and a core of raspberry and cherry flavors. Details of spice, blood orange and cedar linger on the finish. Drink now
through 2027." Maryann Worobiec, Wine Spectator

“Deep ruby color; smooth, lush texture; dense, ripe black cherry  with flesh, spice and oak notes; juicy and deep, long and balanced" Anthony Dias-Blue,
Blue Reviews/The Tasting Panel

"“Very fruity, ripe and varietal bouquet with dark cherry and raspberry fruits, plum and wild red florals, mineral and toasty wood tones. Very youthful and
tense on the nose, but with complexity leading to high expectations on the palate. Mineral, plums, dark cherry and wild berry fruit flavours, dry and spicy
with toasty wood tones; medium + tannin impact with velvet to course silk textures; youthful, tense and lengthy. A wine requiring cellar time and some
peace and quiet to find harmony – which it will. Decant for service, best drinking from 2018 through 2026.” Cameron Douglas, Master of Sommelier

As a personal favorite of Mt. Beautiful’s owner David Teece, it’s incredibly important for Mt. Beautiful that their Pinot Noir showcases the best aspects of the varietal. Subtlety is the secret inside this wine. It begins with sophisticated floral fragrances of violets and blackberries, while showcasing an elegant mediumweight palate that features ripe blackberry fruit, earthiness and subtle tannins.

Mt. Beautiful's Pinot Noir is planted on the Southern section of their vineyard, which has the highest elevation, providing extra warmth and less exposure to frost. In addition, the vines are closely planted to reduce vigour, resulting in lower crop levels and allowing us to ripen these grapes to achieve a true expression of this variety. They hand tend all their Pinot Noir throughout the season and at harvest. Their mix of Pinot Noir clones were specifically chosen for their flavor profile with 50% of the vineyard planted in Burgundy clones. Clone 667 fills out the middle palate, while 777 provides a long finish. The rest of the vines are a mixture of eleven other clones, including UCD 5, UCD 6, 114, 115, Mariafeld, AM10, 4, 5, 943 and Abel. The aim of these selections is to build sound palate structure in the wine, providing a vibrant ruby colored wine with ripe fruit, subtle tannins, great length and persistence of flavour.

2015 was the best vintage for Pinot Noir experienced yet at Mt Beautiful. Good flowering led to even bunches and well-balanced vines. Although the summer season was warmer than normal with hot days and warm nights, cooling easterly winds helped to slow ripening. All the fruit was hand-picked, de-stemmed and gravity fed to tank. Individual blocks were fermented separately, and comprised of multi clonal blends which add complexity and aid the integration of flavors. Seven days of cold soaking were followed by a fast ferment, with punch downs twice a day to achieve an aromatic wine with good tannin balance. After two weeks of post-ferment maceration, the grapes were pressed, with free-run and pressings kept separate. Aged for 10 months in French oak barrels; 25% of which were new, the wine went through malo-lactic fermentation in barrel, racked once and lightly fined with egg whites prior to bottling in March.

Food Pairing: Mt. Beautiful Pinot Noir is excelent next to crispy duck, wild pork, water cress sandwiches, spring lamb or a romantic mood.