2025 Yabby Lake Single Vineyard Tasmania Pinot Noir, Coal River Valley

Silver at the 2026 Sydney Royal Wine Show

Coal River Valley pinot noir; for the clone geeks – 36/31/20/13% 667/777/115/D4V2. Northerly aspect, in Campania, just 8% whole bunch in '25 and matured in French oak, 25% new. Magenta-splashed ruby in the glass with lifted characters of juicy red/dark cherry, red plum and raspberry fruits with a slide of wild strawberry. Hints of crushed rock, Chinese five-spice, struck flint, pomegranate, shiitake broth, sous bois, gentle nutty oak, shoyu and citrus blossom. Pure, harmonious and displaying a lovely interplay of fruit, minerality and savoury elements. It's a lovely graceful pinot with toothsome, crushed-stone tannins and a bright cherry-skin acidity on exit. Drink to 2042.

96 points Dave Brookes for Halliday Wine Companion, March 2026

This well-travelled Pinot has a hell of a story to tell. Fruit was hand-picked in Tasmania’s Coal River Valley before being transferred overnight to the Yabby Lake Vineyard winery on the Mornington Peninsula. Winemakers then got down to work, de-stemming fruit before wild fermentation in oak with the addition of some whole bunches (8%). The finale involved maturation time in French puncheons (25% new). The detail in the winemaking is reflected in the wine. Vibrant purple-red hues. Fruit – red cherry, damson plums, dried raspberry – shows a fragrant, aromatic lift matched to musk florals, rose petal, herbs, red liquorice and spice. Fine-edged, fine tannin-ed, it runs smooth across the tongue in a world of bright flavour with an underlying earthiness that resonates long. So elegant, so good both now and into a medium-long term future which is assured. Drink to 2037.

95 points Jeni Port for Wine Pilot, August 2026

Medium-depth of red-purple; lovely sweet brandied cherry aroma, a touch of clovey spice; succulently ripe fruit on palate, with fine grained, subtle tannins adding just enough structure. Gorgeously sweet fruit flavour floods the palate: a delicious pinot noir that drinks well young and will age superbly. Drink to 2040.

95 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, August 2026

Yabby Lake Vineyard is a Mornington Peninsula winery established by the Kirby family in 1998. Over the past decade, the vineyard has built a reputation for chardonnay and pinot noir of great purity and character. Led by winemaker Tom Carson, the Yabby Lake philosophy is to craft wines that speak of site and the season in which they were grown. Over the years, fruit sources have expanded to take in warmer reaches in Heathcote, and the cool-climate magic of Tasmania’s Coal River Valley.