A joint effort by Prophet Rock's Paul Pujol and Bonnes Mares Musigny maestro François Millet. The most superior parcels of Pinot Noir were selected by Millet from the Prophet's Home Vineyard, a magnificent site on a high elevation, steep glacial terrace at Bendigo. Ferments are plunged only once and moved without any pumps into a sellection of Rémond Allier for a judicious term of maturation. The traditional old world handling techniques meet the excellence of new world fruit, in a pas de deux which defines the sublime elegance of Central Otago Pinot Noir.

With each passing vintage, Oyster Bay work alongside more established Pinot Noir vines grown to smaller and smaller sites. Each unique block is harvested as a separate parcel and treated individually at each stage of the winemaking. Burgundy clones which can provide ripe flavour and tannins, good colour and structure are selected. Clones 115,667,777 and Abel provide intensity and diversity of flavour, to be aged in a mix of Alliers, Jupilles and Troncais French oak, coopered by renowned artisans Dargaud & Jaegle, Francois Freres and Mercurey.

Nautilus have been focused on delivering nothing but the finest Marlborough Pinot Noir since inaugural release. Fruit is sourced from five special sites, each of which bring their own level of interest and complexity. Clay Hills in the Southern Valleys provides the backbone, harvests from the Awatere and Kaituna, Renwick and Yarrum vineyards, contribute to the structure and add layers of flavour. A tightly wound and regionally articulate Pinot Noir, to match alongside venison or veal, salmon steaks or duck.

The Clay Hills are six unique blocks of varied sloping clay aspects, planted to a ridge which divides Brancott and Omaka Valleys in southern Marlborough. A mixture of stemmed and whole bunch fruit are treated to eighteen days of cold soak and a spontaneous, wild indigenous yeast ferment, pressed and settled into a high proportion of new French oak barriques for eleven months maturation. This very special site sets the benchmark which inspires the dedicated Nautilus vineyard teams to emulate the excellence of Clay Hills Pinot Noir.

The precious Pinot yielding Nanny Goat vines are planted to haggard aspects along Central Otago's austere valley floor. This is a region of climatic extremes, very hot summers, short autumns and bitterly cold days throughout the winter. Soils are rocky and offer poor fertility, growing conditions which are heaven sent for making world class Pinot Noir. The inhospitable climes deliver a harvest of the smallest berries, bursting with flavours, concentrated with intense varietal characters, endowed with stalky tannins and fruit laden acids.

An assemblage of superior clones Pinot Noir, picked off the Mudhouse estate vineyard in the Bendigo precinct of Central Otago. A challenging site to grow fruit, vines are planted to three terraces with slightly differing microclimes, encouraging grapes to achieve an allsort of complexity and tannin profile. A measure of whole bunch inclusion builds texture and infuses layers of flavour, a soundly structured and well proportioned Pinot Noir with the palate weight and depth of fruit to accompany traditional roast with root vegetables and red wine Jus.

Hand crafted from choice parcels of fruit grown to closely husbanded vines on the family owned Mount Fishtail property in Wairau Valley. Konrad Hengstler pays particular attention to retaining the barest amount of natural fruit sugar, in a fine balance of the juicy, refreshing acidity. A wonderful anywhere, anytime wine that's clean and crisp, always a classic expression of Marlborough, simply sublime alongside any recipe duckl or a spread of piquantly spiced Asian fare.

A multi award winning Pinot Noir, Roaring Meg is the enthusiastic younger brother to the exalted Mt Difficulty label, a more approachable sibling of opulence and panache. Crafted to a fruit forward style from hand picked vineyards throughout the Cromwell basin, even in its early youth, Roaring Meg is fashioned to exhibit exhilarating spice characters and a concentration of ripe Pinot characters.

Elite single vineyard Pinot Noir, Mt Difficulty reflects the virtue of painfully low yields and uncompromising standards of winemaking. The artisanal commune of dedicated growers have harnessed the once brutal terrains of New Zealand's deep south, to achieve vintages which set the benchmark for all new world wines. Packspur was established 1993 along a track that was used to pack supplies to the goldfields of Cardrona Valley. Three hectares of north facing Pinot Noir clones 5, 6, 115 and Lincoln Mix, were planted to escape the worst of Central Otago's withering winds.

Clones 113, 114 and 115, planted to a site of schist glacial gravels along the banks of Kawarau River, a terroir that's heaven sent for superior vintages Pinot Noir. Grapes are all destemmed, cold soaked and treated to a fortnight of ferments, followed by several days of maceration, rested and racked to barrel for malolactic and sixteen months maturation. Painstakingly hand crafted, its earthy, savoury, sauvage raspberry notes before a background of violet florals, densely sculptured palate with lovely tension over persistent fine grained tannins and very cherry fruit.

Long Gully Vineyard is perched atop the banks of Kawarau River, one of the oldest sites in Bannockburn. A mix of destemmed grapes and whole bunches are treated to days of maceration followed by a week of warm temperature ferments. Batches are punched down for a week, pressed and racked to barrel for malolactic and sixteen months maturation. Dark cherryness and earthy, savoury brown spice over a background of mocha oak. Long Gully Pinot Noir is hand crafted in very limited quantities and only ever released from the finest vintages.

By virtue of their prolific range of single vineyard editions, assembling parcels with the greatest synergy are central to the production of a Mt Difficulty in perfect balance. Fruit is sourced from the south side of Kawarau River at Bannockburn, where different clonal parcels on the same block, which can ripen together, are handled as a unique individual parcel. Exhibiting an amazing weight of fruit on the palate, a powerfully structured Otago Pinot, fleshy and plushly textured, finishing with a lovely extraction of velvet tannin and perfumed cherry plum richness.

Mount Riley is a family owned estate with strong traditional values and a guiding philosophy of being involved at all stages of the winemaking process, from the vineyard to the glass. Always in fine fashion and consistently so, an ambassador of fine Marlborough Pinot Noir to the world, Mount Riley can boast significant accolades at conspicuous wine competitions, from the ANZ Awards to the prestigious London International. Multiple vineyard parcels and clonal material construct a Marlborough Pinot Noir of great character, depth of flavour and exquisite charm.

A fully Certified Organic wine, fashioned from Pinot Noir grown to three Marlborough vineyards which exhibit profound affinity. Momo is Maori for offspring, the consular Pinot wine that's sprung from Marlborough's Seresin Estate. Now all grown up with its own identity and personality, youthful, urbane and well travelled, charming and seriously stylish. Momo loves good food and great conversation, above all, Momo is about enjoyment, the sublime pleasure of good wine.

From a single elite parcel in the Cromwell basin of Central Otago, a challenging site of gravel clays which encourage the vines to struggle for their nourishment, yielding limited harvests of intensely flavoured Pinot Noir. Grapes are all hand picked and completely destemmed for several days of ferment and a fortnight on skins, followed by a year's age in exclusively French oak. Richly perfumed of cherries and dark festive fruits, its ripe, full bodied palate of forest floor, licorice and stalk, undulates over a lingering length of delicious, gummy tannins.

From the Mission’s Cable Station Road block in Awatere Valley, a gently sloping, free draining site with dry climate, yielding a low crop of small bunches and tiny berries of intense flavour. Fruit is cold soaked for three days and pumped over throughout a fortnight of ferments, pressed and treated to an extended maceration, followed by a judicious term of maturation to achieve a forward drinking, fruit driven Marlborough Pinot Noir style. An abundance of sweet fruit and ripe silky tannins, sound structure and a long, fruit filled finish.

Main Divide is the mighty range of Southern Alps which form the backbone of Te Wai Pounamu. The highly accomplished Pegasus Bay team work with good local growers to realize harvests of the finest fruit. Pinot Noir is assembled from a handful of choice vineyards planted to unique terroirs, which can speak of the world's most challenging mesoclimes. An artisanal Burgundy style vinification achieves a rich and seductive Pinot wine, endowed with savoury meat and trade spice characters, integrated oak and harmonious tannins.

Crafted from a collation of Marlborough and Nelson River fruit, a full bodied Pinot Noir offering layers of ripe berry characters, reflecting the unique microclimes of exceptional vineyards. The secret to Latitude 41 lies within the extended New Zealand growing seasons and high solar intensity. Low yields and slow ripening conditions yield harvests of richly flavoured Pinot Noir, parcels exhibiting velvety, showroom tannins and vibrant dark cherry flavours. Exquisite length and crisp fruit character, Latitude 41 has the basics of balance, flavour and finesse, completely right.

Konrad Hengstler discovered Marlborough while traveling through New Zealand in 1987 and was immediately attracted to the generosity of the wines. Today Konrad excels at viticuture and loves everything about the land, his estate wineworks are located in Waihopai Valley at the very heart of Marlborough, it enjoys magnificent views of the surrounding mountain ranges. Treated to a course of wild indigenous yeast ferments, hand plunged and pressed into seasoned French oak barriques for ten months maturation, a delicious single vineyard Marlborough Pinot Noir in full bloom.

Named for a rare grasshopper Sigaus childi, found only at Central Otago within the Earnscleugh gold mine tailings, just across the road from Grasshopper Rock vineyard. The site is fortuitously harsh and sufficiently challenging to make the vines work their hardest. With extremes of heat and cold comes the risk of severe spring and autumn frosts, the property represents a demanding but rewarding environment for the production of world class Pinot Noir.

Giesen own and operate many of New Zealand's eldest and noblest vineyards, having accumulated an inventory of the finest viticulture since establishment in 1981. A single block of vine at Wairau, defined by a mesoclime and terroir uncannily similar to the great Crus des Cotes du Rhone, was replanted to Pinot Noir, with a view to creating small batches of the most superior vintages. Managed to fully certified organic husbandry, the precious Ridge Block yields the most intense Pinot Noir, crafted to minimalist old world techniques, articulate of a very special site.

Pinot Noir excells within the favourable winegrowing climes of Marlborough, fruit ripens to excellent condition on healthy vines. The Giesen style varies from one vintage to the next as determined by the season, always displaying the individuality of site, soil and mesoclime. An animate Pinot wine with ripe varietal flavours and refined tannins, fashioned from fruit grown to splendid Marlborough vineyards.

Central Otago is a winegrower's paradise and a Pinot Noir maker's dream, a topographical cornucoppia of microclimes and stupendous terroirs. Planted to rich glacial deposits along the Wanaka Cromwell Highway, under the lee of Sugarloaf near the hamlet of Pisa, the frugal harvest of TOSQ Vineyard is treated to traditional wild yeast open vinification. The active barrels set sail across the Tasman for completion of ferments at the Giant Steps wineworks in Yarra Valley. Central Otago as you like it, gummy, soily tannins, peppery black brambles, gelatinous opulence and palate weight throughout.

A characterful Pinot Noir born of triumph over adversity. Considerable research by Stewart Elms in 1991 identified the north facing slopes at the end of Felton Road near Bannockburn as being one of the warmest and most ideal sites in Central Otago. Heat summation data and soil maps from the construction of the Clyde Hydro Dam made a crucial contribution to the establishment of vines on Felton Road. Mouthcoating, subtle and caressing of fruit, a Pinot Noir of harmony, restraint and sophistication that intrigues rather than shouts its breeding, finishing with just enough tannin to frame the wine beautifully.

A number of sites along Felton Road were meticulously surveyed before any vines went in the ground, favourable soils were identified as free draining and low fertility, influenced by the Central Otago growing season to yield an extraordinary quality of Pinot Noir. The non interventionalist approach means a traditional fermentation and moderately long maceration on skins to extract rich colours and tannin with considerable depth of flavour. Aged for a year in a selection of the finest French barriques, its dusty floral nose, violets and rose, integrate seamlessly with the oak perfumes of cinnamon and clove.

True to the meaning of the word essence, a wine that expresses the heart and soul of New Zealand's premiere Pinot Noir growing region of Central Otago. The parched little berries with thick skins grown to the ultra cool ripening mesoclimes are characterised by their intensely concentrated flavours, yielding intense wines with redolent bouquets and mighty tannins.

A decidedly regional Pinot Noir, Drift are all about capturing the natural endowments of Marlborough and bringing the goodness of it all to the world. Minimal intervention is a priority, to ensure that the wines clearly expresses the uniqueness of the land. Drift take a decidely eclectic approach to constructing a wine that expresses the totality of all good things Marlborough. The palate is animate with ripe red cherry and raspberry flavours, perfumed by spice notes, supported by gentle tannins and juicy acidity, wrapped in a veil of supply seasoned oak.

From plantings dating back to the late 1970s, older well established vines on free draining silty clay loams, yielding fully ripe Pinot Noir grapes with concentrated characters and exemplary varietal expressions. The superlative sites are managed by viticulturist Ivan Sutherland, the fruit is vinified into a robust Burgundian styling by James Healy, both contributed to the genesis at neighbouring Cloudy Bay. An ambitious collation of Dijon clones 777, 667 and 115, Pommard clone 5, Abel and 10/5 from the illustrious Dog Point Vineyard.

An exclusively South Island Pinot Noir, sourced from a number of small growers in the esoteric and bohemian quarter of vineyards around Nelson River, with components drawn from good sites in Marlborough. A variety of clones, as well as some diverse microclimes, have provided a great spectrum of flavours to craft an elegant, distinctively varietal, engagingly complex wine. An exemplary, regionally focused Pinot Noir with gentle spice and ample cherry fruit, clearly planned with good food in mind. Raise a glass to all those dedicated, independent growers.