2023 Rockburn Crimson Peak Pinot Noir, Central Otago

It's splendidly ripe and fragrant on the nose with aromas of dark plum, raspberry, warm spice, and hazelnuts. It's equally appealing in the mouth, delivering excellent weight and silky flow, beautifully framed by silky texture and polished tannins. At its best: now to 2031. 

94 points Sam Kim wineorbit.com

Rockburn Crimson Peak Pinot Noir from Central Otago is a rich, vibrant and beautifully balanced expression of the region’s mountain-grown Pinot fruit. Crafted by winemaker Malcolm Rees-Francis, it showcases Rockburn’s signature elegance and purity while delivering a little extra depth and intensity from select parcels chosen for their concentration and structure. Named for the striking crimson sunsets that light up the peaks around Queenstown and Cromwell, this wine captures both the drama and the serenity of Central Otago’s landscape.

The fruit is sourced from vineyards in Bannockburn and Parkburn, two of the most prized subregions of Central Otago. These sites, with their schist and loam soils and extreme diurnal temperature shifts, yield small, intensely flavoured berries that combine ripe fruit with natural acidity and fine tannin. The grapes are hand picked, cold soaked for gentle extraction, and fermented in small open-top tanks using wild yeasts. After gentle pressing, the wine matures in French oak barriques, around a quarter new, for ten to twelve months before blending and bottling.

In the glass it shows a deep ruby hue. The aroma is enticing and perfumed, with red cherry, black plum and wild raspberry layered with notes of thyme, clove, dark chocolate and subtle oak spice. The palate is medium bodied and silky, with juicy fruit and fine tannins balanced by bright acidity. The finish is long and graceful, carrying savoury hints of forest floor, dried herbs and spice that reveal its Central Otago origins.

Rockburn Crimson Peak Pinot Noir pairs beautifully with duck, lamb, mushroom risotto or venison carpaccio. It also suits dishes featuring truffle, roast beetroot or aged cheeses. Delicious now for its brightness and harmony, it will cellar well for up to eight years, gaining savoury complexity and velvet texture with time.