In 2016 Alex Russell & Lara Suitor started a family and relocated to Lara’s hometown and family in Launceston and they both set their sights on the cooler climate wine making region of Pipers River.

I tasted this alongside a far higher priced pinot noir (double the price in fact) and this wine won the day by a margin. This is a ripper of a Pinot Noir. It's cherried and sinewy and drifted with autumn leaf notes, and it has a touch of satin to its texture too. Sweet-sour cherry, woodsmoke and undergrowth characters play minor roles but, in doing so, emphasise this wine's complexity. Excellence lives here. Closure: Screwcap; Date Tasted: January 2026; Alcohol: 13.5%; Price: $35.00; Rating: 94 Points; Campbell Mattinson