2025 Two Paddocks Picnic Pinot Noir, Central Otago

The Picnic wines from Two Paddocks are fruit-forward expressions of Central Otago and are made from organic estate grown fruit and sourced from vineyards in the Alexandra, Gibbston and Bannockburn sub-regions.

Medium-bodied, fresh and vibrant, it delivers crunchy and saline red fruit with aromas that hint at flowers and herbs. Ready to enjoy, this should keep well for a couple of years and sits well with a nice charcuterie board and mellow mushroom dishes.

More about this wine

The 2025 fruit was harvested over several days in the first half of April. Most of the fruit was de-stemmed and the parcels given nine days of cold pre-ferment maceration before the indigenous yeasts started their work. The wine was then left on skins for a further nine days post-fermentation before it was pressed into one- to four-year-old French oak barriques for a ten-month maturation before racking, blending and bottling.

About this producer

The late Sam Neill started Two Paddocks in 1993 with modest ambitions and two hectares of Pinot Noir in the Gibbston subregion of Central Otago. That vineyard has since been augmented by three other small vineyards in the subregions of Alexandra and Bannockburn, all farmed organically by a team led by viticulturist Mike Wing. The minimal intervention winemaking is in the hands of Dean Shaw, who is consulted by Larry McKenna of Martinborough Vineyards fame.