2022 Best's Great Western Old Vine Pinot Meunier, Great Western

Old vines don’t describe the half of it. Best’s vines were planted in 1868 which makes them among the oldest pinot meunier vines in the world. It is a point to ponder as you explore the myriad aromas and flavours of this wine, a free-wheeling, sustained ride of pure vinous pleasure. Bright purple-garnet hues. Combines youthful freshness and vitality with real depth of concentrated flavour. Old vines off a single vineyard site seen to be able to achieve that kind of effortless feat so easily. Cherry, pomegranate, raspberry, dried herbs and a ribbon of pepper and earthy spice mingle, bright and easy flowing, with superfine tannins and gentle oak. The palate comes alive with complexity of fruit, yet it’s so, so young. This is the great secret to this wine, year in year out. It arrives fully formed and ready to be enjoyed upon release and yet, rest assured, it will age an absolute treat. It is a national treasure.

96 points JP winepilot.com

It's structured and herbal, cool and complex, and yet there's a brightness to this, and a perfume. It's a lovely wine. Boysenberry, roasted nuts, forest berries and mint, with woodsy spice and sweet cedar in support. The fresh, persistent, complex quality of this is quite something.

94 points CM winecompanion.com.au

Pinot Meunier vineyards were first planted in 1868, comprising about 85% Pinot Meunier and the remaining component being Pinot Noir. Today, we hand-pick and sort the grapes, which are then fermented in small open fermenters and matured in French oak. It is the earliest picked red grape at Best's.

The Best’s Old Vine Pinot Meunier has a cult following, particularly in the wine community, where people understand the scarcity of this varietal planting. Best’s Old Vine Pinot Meunier is made only in the best vintages; in other years, the fruit goes into Best’s Concongella Collection Pinot Meunier/Noir

Bright mid crimson with a pale vermillion hue. A heady perfume of primary fruits, dried cranberries, cherries and freshly ground spices. Intriguing and beguiling. Concentrated and dense, but light bodied. The fruit flavours are layered with spices and framed with silky tannins. Good to drink in the short term but it will reward cellaring in ideal conditions for 20 years or more