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Dry River Pinot Noir 2023

  • Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
    94+ Points
  • Bob Campbell MW
    93 Points
Dry River Pinot Noir 2023
  • Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
    94+ Points
  • Bob Campbell MW
    93 Points
Dry River Pinot Noir 2023
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Dry River Pinot Noir 2023

SKU: DRPN202310 UCNZ
10-15 Years
Regular price $135.00 $124.99 / bottle
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Rated 94+/100 by Robert Parker and 93/100 by Bob Campbell MW, this Pinot Noir is noted for its remarkable complexity and potential to age gracefully until 2036 and beyond.

Offers a dense bouquet of cherries, exotic spices, plums, and florals, complemented by flavors of coffee grounds, black cherry, and Szechuan peppercorns, providing a rich and nuanced tasting experience.

The wine showcases sensational concentration, fine tannins, and perfectly judged ripeness, making it an exemplary choice for both current enjoyment and long-term cellaring.

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Dry River Pinot Noir 2023

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Tasting Notes

The Dry River Pinot Noir 2022 is a standout vintage that exhibits a remarkable early identity with an intricate and alluring bouquet. The nose reveals dense aromas of cherries, exotic spices, and plums, combined with a floral undertone, offering a classical character that surpasses some of its past counterparts in early expression. This exceptional Pinot Noir is defined by its perfect balance and concentration, with integrated tannins and a harmonious structure that promises both immediate pleasure and exceptional aging potential.

Critics have lauded the 2022 vintage for its complex and savory profile, including coffee grounds, black cherry, and hints of raspberry leaf tea. The wine’s fine-boned yet persistent character makes it a true standout, with a potential for slow, elegant development in the cellar. Whether enjoyed now or aged for years, the Dry River Pinot Noir 2022 stands as a testament to meticulous winemaking and is sure to impress both collectors and connoisseurs alike.

Critic Scores

The 2022 Pinot Noir leads with coffee grounds, black cherry, satsuma plum skin, Szechuan peppercorn, pink peppercorns, a hint of raspberry leaf tea and graphite. The wine smells savory while delivering all of these things. In the mouth, it is fine-boned but persistent and behaves in a gentle, splayed sort of manner through the finish. It's a very pretty wine, one that is quiet now, but I feel it will age slowly and elegantly in the cellar. This is a wine to drink now and to perhaps misunderstand in doing so. Or it's a wine to be patient with and reap the benefits after five or so years and beyond. I love the wine here, today, but I'd be cautious to recommend drinking your bottles too early—consider from 2027. 13% alcohol, sealed under Diam. 2022 was a transition vintage. Wilco Lam left in October 2022 just prior to the sale of the business, and so the wines were in barrel and mostly fermented but unfinished. The wines were then finished by winemaker Ben McNab in the same manner they would have been had Wilco still been there.

Herbal, high energy pinot noir with cherry, hedgerow, pepper/spice, and grape stem characters. Youthful wine that would benefit from bottle age. Quite complex with layers of floral, fruit and savoury flavours.

Vinification & Cultivation

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Vineyard Cultivation

Dry River, established in 1979 by Neil and Dawn McCallum, is New Zealand's most collected Pinot Noir producer, on the free-draining alluvial gravels of the Martinborough terrace in the Wairarapa. The 2023 draws on the estate's old vines and its European-influenced, minimal-intervention culture, which targets true physiological ripeness, balance and long-term ageing rather than immediate varietal appeal. The cool, dry, wind-exposed maritime climate and low yields concentrate the fruit. Now under new ownership and made by winemaker Ben McNab, the 2023 shows the estate's hallmark complexity and is rated for graceful development to 2036 and beyond.

Vinification

Hand-picked fruit was vinified in the established Dry River style, with whole-bunch and savoury-spice complexity built around a herbal, high-energy core of cherry, hedgerow and pepper. Maturation was in French oak with a measured proportion of new barrels, preserving fine, well-rounded tannins and freshness, and the wine was bottled with minimal handling to retain floral lift and detail. Youthful and layered on release, it is structured to benefit considerably from bottle age, combining dark cherry, violet, raspberry, anise and fresh-herb flavours with a long, smooth finish.