2009 Pinot Noir, Escarpment

Description

Escarpment is the brainchild of one of New Zealand’s most respected winemakers, Larry McKenna (of Martinborough Vineyards fame), dubbed ‘The Prince of Pinot’ by international wine writer James Halliday. In 1999, Larry had the enviable opportunity of choosing where to locate a new estate, choosing 24 hectares of alluvial gravel on river terraces in the Te Muna Valley. Free-draining soils on a natural escarpment over 10,000 years old, combined with cooler nights make for perfect Pinot Noir ripening conditions. As he says: ‘I want to set new directions (especially for Pinot Noir), creating wines of complexity, texture and structure. Our wines will be different, full of surprise and perhaps even unconventional’ . The inaugural wines were the 2001s, and we believe they are getting better with every vintage. Definitely one to watch in Martinborough.