2022 Pooley Jack Denis Pooley Pinot Noir, Coal River Valley

Sourced from the Cooinda Vale Vineyard near Campania in the Coal River Valley; 20% whole bunch, matured for 11 months in 50% new French oak barriques. A step up in fruit intensity but still with the characteristic grace that is the leitmotif of the Pooley wines. Darker fruits – cherry, plum, forest berries cut with violets, vanilla, mushroom broth, dried tobacco, allspice and forest floor. Less gamey than other wines in the Pooley quiver but so long and harmonious, tannins compact and powdery and a sapid, umami angle to the fine acidity. Drink 2023 to 2038.

97 points Dave Brookes for Halliday Wine Companion, April 2024

Deep-ish red with a good tinge of purple and the first aromas are all about iodine and herbs: evidently a lot of whole-bunch was used. Campari/bitter herbs, some greener traces adding highlights. A wine of great depth and complexity which needed time to come out of its shell. There is plenty of tannin and extract, and terrific concentration but also elegance and balance. The wine needs a big glass to reveal itself fully. More time recommended but it's already great drinking. Drink 2026 to 2037

97 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, January 2024

Piercing red-fruited aromas of cherries, wild raspberries, dried herbs, orange oil and violets. The palate is medium-bodied with finely integrated tannins and focused acidity, giving notes of blackberries, blood oranges, rose petals and graphite. Refined and sophisticated, with a savory undertone. 100% de-stemmed fruit, which brings a real fruit purity. Excellent. Drink or hold.

96 points James Suckling, October 2024

Pooley Wines was established in 1985 when Denis and Margaret Pooley planted ten rows of Riesling and seven rows of Pinot Noir on their farm at Cooinda Vale in the Coal River Valley — a retirement project that quietly became one of Tasmania's most admired wine estates. Three generations of the family have shaped it since, with winemaker Anna Pooley now at the helm, bringing precision and a deep sense of place to everything produced under the label.

The Jack Denis Pooley is named for the estate's founder and comes from some of the oldest vines at Cooinda Vale, low-yielding blocks that give the wine its concentration and its composure. Just four barrels made. Wild fermentation, extended skin contact and maturation in new French oak barriques build a wine of considerable depth, yet the house signature of grace and restraint runs through every element.

Dark cherry, plum and forest berries on the nose, cut with violets, dried tobacco, allspice and forest floor. The palate is long and harmonious, with compact powdery tannins and a sapid, umami-edged acidity that carries the wine to a finish of real persistence.

A big glass and patience are rewarded here. Anna Pooley's own notes suggest continued development over two to three decades. Few bottles remain.