2022 Garagiste Le Stagiaire Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula

Now aren’t you a pretty pinot, and charming with flavours of wild strawberries and red cherries all lightly spiced. Supple tannins with a juiciness across the palate and the right amount of refreshing acidity.

93 points Jane Faulkner winecompanion.com.au

The fruit for this year’s blend is drawn from Merricks, Balnarring and Red Hill. The Merricks site, Barney’s flagship, contributes bright fruit characters and a signature savoury quality. The Balnarring site, which Barney has farmed for 12 years, adds shade and spice while the more southerly, cool and high-elevation site in Red Hill contributes linearity. When combined these sites come together to create something special.
 
After sorting in both the vineyard and winery, fermentations were natural with whole berries complemented by a 10% whole-bunch component. The fruit spent 21 days on skins, with gentle pump-overs and a small amount of plunging towards the end. The eight months élevage (on gross lees) was roughly half/half in 300-litre hogsheads and foudre, with just five per cent new oak. It was bottled unfined and unfiltered.
 
Captivating from the first sniff, the 2022 is layered with bunchy freshness, savoury spice and the prettiness of summer berries. It’s elegant and aromatic, deeply flavoured but never weighty; its silky and supple texture is underpinned by long, tender tannins and seductively fresh acidity. The beautifully calibrated finish is enchantingly slinky and impressively persistent. As always, this is outstanding value.