DECANTER’S BEST: TOP NEW WORLD PINOT

DECANTER February 2008
“Spicy raspberry and strawberry nose. Crisp and fresh with juicy fruit and excellent length”.

Selected as one of the four best NZ Pinot Noirs

Delta Vineyards

http://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/20071203_1
Delta’s small but perfectly formed range includes a straight Marlborough Pinot Noir and the superior Hatter’s Hill Pinot Noir (from £13.99 in the UK). All the Pinot fruit comes from the clay soils of Delta’s own vineyard (pictured below) just west of Blenheim, and
Hatter’s is a selection of the best fruit from the hill blocks, further selected at blending. Low yields, hand picking and the inclusion of 10 per cent of stems and whole berries contribute to the structure. Matt is particularly keen on hand-plunging the open-top fermenters, as you can see in the photo above. 75% of the wine is aged for 11 months in
French oak, including 45 per cent new barrels.

The emphasis is on purity and freshness of fruit - which explains his hawk-like attention when it comes to avoiding Brettanomyces (a very common spoilage yeast, properly known as Dekkera, which can give very pungent stable or bandaid off-flavours or simply dampen the expressiveness of the fruit with spicy peppery notes that are often
mistaken for oak influence). Brett is particularly damaging to aromatic varieties such as Pinot and Nebbiolo, though this is a whole other subject, and a topic of continued and heated debate in the wine trade, since in some circumstances and with some varieties, a little bit of brett can add complexity.

The current 2005 vintage of Hatter's Hill Pinot Noir is still pretty youthful and oaky aromas are noticeable but underneath this fine veneer of sweet oaky spice the red fruit character is very pure, aromatic and fine. Like the Sauvignon, it has clear varietal definition - delicate red fruits in this case - but it’s also subtle and elegant with a
lingering aftertaste of cool, very fresh pure fruit. You can almost taste the New Zealand climate in this - sunny and clear but not too hot. It’s a pleasure to drink now but will be even better in a year or so.

HARPERS CHOICE: September 2007

“This New World effort is still really tight, but with a little more time in bottle, you can tell this New Zealand Pinot is going to open out into something pure and intense. There’s black cherry, bramble and pepper on the nose with coffee bean and spicy oak on the finish. The tannins are ripe and the acidity is mouthwatering. “

Hatters Hill Pinot Noir 2005 Marlborough

The New Zealand International Wine Show GOLD MEDAL

Air New Zealand Wine Awards – 2006 GOLD MEDAL

Sydney International Wine Challenge BLUE GOLD
SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL WINE COMPETITION
Judges' Comments:
Kym Milne
Good, ripe, lifted fruit. Textured, silky palate with some complex characters. Good, firm but not hard tannins. Needs some time. Looked a little bit raw and young with the food but a good wine.

Tony Allen
A warm, perfumed fruit. Wild strawberry. A touch of flower. Quite warm on the palate. Very welcoming. It tasted a touch hot with food but still a good match.

Mary Ewing-Mulligan
On the nose, some oakiness. With air, a waxy note prevents the fruit from showing through. Some sweetness shows in the palate as well as a spicy note. Not the most
elegant Pinot Noir but it’s flavourful. It sustains itself with food.

Robin Moody
Dark cherry on the nose. Slightly plain but clean. Lifts well. Sweetish palate but slightly hard. Very nice cherry flavours. Simple but attractive. I thought this was a great
food wine. The flavours worked really well and pushed the wine up a notch or two

Steve Flamsteed
Rich, generous cherries. Almost cocoa roasted coffee oak. Soft, ripe, round, luscious and velvety mouth feel. Good tannins. Tight and ripe. Good oak. Good acidity. Good with
the food.

Neil Hadley
A medium pink. Its nose is quite light but fresh and clean. It has a rich fruit in the mouth with a nice firm tannin frame and plummy finish. It becomes a little thin with the food.

Stephen Harris
This wine seems to be very heavy. Almost plum fruit, soft mid palate and then a grainy, firm tannin end. As you might think, the richness of the Pinot Noir held the food
well. The weight of the plum fruit added to the food and the astringency helped cleanse the palate and leave the palate nice, fresh and clean.
© Sydney International Wine Competition 2007
http://www.top100wines.com/wines

“Rich, generous cherries. Almost cocoa roasted coffee oak. Soft, ripe, round, luscious and velvety mouthfeel. Good tannins. Tight and ripe. Good oak. Good acidity. Good with food.” Steve Flamsteed

Wine Enthusiast – USA 90 points and Editor’s Choice
“This is a full-bodied, supple rendition of Marlborough Pinot Noir, boasting smoky, slightly herbal-peppery scents and bold cherry and plum fruit. There’s a suggestion of sassafras or cola as well, which gives this wine an almost Californian flavor. Long and velvety on the finish.”

Tony Aspler A Wine Lover’s Diary Party 101 August 29th, 2006 - Canada A selection of the best grapes grown on the highest points of the Delta Vineyard): intense, sweet black cheery fruit, well integrated oak, a beautifully balanced wine. 4½ stars

Winestate Magazine Australia November 2006
4½ stars
Vineyard and label of the owner and winemaker of Saint Clair with David Gleave, wine trader in London. Nicely intense young style from Marlborough, low cropped, open-top fermented and hand plunged. It works well, a stylish wine evident already, the complex best still to come. $30

2005 Hatters Hil Pinot Noir