It passes the wife test, with flying colours. Always important. "One of the best wines I've had this year," she said. That doesn't leave me with much room to move. It's both muscular and perfumed. In from the paddock, scrubbed pretty much clean, dressed to kill, a dab of this and that. It's plummy before being cherried, streaked with crushed leaf and chicory notes, and feels smoked but only as a gentle infusion. Undergrowth characters play a role, as does a burst of weightier blackberry, as do twigs and brushes. Tannin rolls slowly through the back half of the wine, bringing flavour with it. A wine with an impressive career ahead of it. Drink 2016 - 2024+

Perfumed, deeply coloured, velvety Martinborough pinot noir, estate-grown at Te Muna and already highly expressive. Rich cherry, plum and spice flavours, showing lovely ripeness, complexity, texture and harmony. Best drinking 2017+

Juicy, robust nose full of summer berry fruit. The palate is rich. hedonistic, on the simple side, but plenty of fun and nicely balanced for an early-drinking style. Drink 2016-2023

Subdued, youthful, darkly fruity, with savoury and spice undertones; structure and bite; promises to be an excellent expression of the bigger, riper style.

Juicy, robust nose full of summer berry fruit. The palate is rich. hedonistic, on the simple side, but plenty of fun and nicely balanced for an early-drinking style. Drink 2016-2023

Subdued, youthful, darkly fruity, with savoury and spice undertones; structure and bite; promises to be an excellent expression of the bigger, riper style.

With a pretty deep cherry hue, the ‘Aroha’ Pinot Noir is a savoury style that needs time to show its best, its tobacco, sour cherry and earthy fruits underpinned by some toasty oak. Quite full and rich, it shows layers of earthy complexity on a long palate and supple tannins to finish.

Considered to be the best vintage in the last 25 years– arguably ever. The deep colour heralds a gloriously expressive Pinot Noir , replete with dark cherry and plumfruit, oak and tannins seamlessly woven into the fruit. Worthy of at least 15 years bottle age, but will please at every point along the way.