2023 Dog Point Pinot Noir, Marlborough

A soft and juicy pinot noir with aromas of dried strawberries, crab apples and hints of meat, cocoa powder and oranges. Medium-bodied, crunchy and dusty. Delicious now. From organically grown grapes. Drink now. 

93 points James Suckling, March 2026

The grapes for the 2023 Dog Point Pinot Noir were sourced from two organically farmed hillside vineyards with clay rich loams planted to a wide selection of Pinot clones. The fruit was handpicked, chilled overnight and further hand sorted before 70% of the clusters were destemmed into stainless steel fermenters, with the balance kept as whole bunches. Ferments started with indigenous yeasts, and the wine was afterwards pressed into French oak barrels, of which 30% were new, for an 18-month rest.  

About this producer

The story of Dog Point has its beginnings at Marlborough’s legendary Cloud Bay winery, where Dog Point co-founders Ivan Sutherland and the late James Healey worked as a team (viticulturist and winemaker, respectively). Ivan and his wife Margaret had planted the first vines on what was to become Dog Point Estate in 1979, and the two were joined by James and his wife Wendy for the 2002 harvest ahead of the inaugural Dog Point vintage release in 2004.

This remains a private business of the Sutherland and Healy families, with operational management today in the hands of the second generation of Sutherlands. The organically certified vineyards in Brancott and Omaka Valleys of Marlborough’s Southern Valleys subregion now stretches over 280 hectares, with only 30-40% finding its way to Dog Point wines, the rest of the fruit finding homes among a dozen or so contract customers in the region. This is the largest certified organic vineyard in New Zealand, with Sauvignon Blanc as the main variety, complemented by 1984-planted Chardonnay and Pinot Noir averaging 40 years of age.