The Premium Pinot Noir Collection features 3 bottles each from 3 different regions of Australia which not only scored 95+ Points or better from the worlds leading wine critics but also shows the diversity of this variety with an example from the Mornington Peninsula, Central Otago, Beechworth and the Yarra Valley.

The StarDozen consists of the following:

3 bottles      Punch Close Planted Yarra Pinot Noir 2019
3 bottles      Valli Gibbston Pinot Noir 2020
3 bottles      Savaterre Pinot Noir 2021
3 bottles      Montalto Tuerong Block Pinot Noir 2020

Thousand Candles Single Vineyard Pinot Noir 2021
Whole bunches (50%), gentle handling with no pumpovers or plunging. Matured in seasoned French barriques. Excellent wines from Thousand Candles in 2021, thoroughly deserving of the Best Small Producer trophy they picked up at the 2022 Yarra Valley Wine Show. A bright crimson red. A gently textured wine that was made with respect for the fruit with real persistence and finesse. There's lovely purity to the aromas of red cherries, small, wild strawberries, violets and spice. The whole bunches are barely perceptible, and velvety, quite firm and persistent tannins are in complete harmony with the wine, too. Date: Jan 2023; Alcohol: 13%; Price: $65.00; Drink by: 2028; Rating: 96 Points & Special Value Star; James Halliday Wine Companion

Valli Gibbston Pinot Noir 2020
Complex and seductive bouquet with scents of fallen leaves and dried wild herbs, roses and cherries, mineral and spiced with oak and a savoury quality. Even better on the palate - texture and barrel spices, a gentle savoury herb quality, some vanilla nd dusty clove spices and a leesy nutty quality. Complex and lengthy. Chalky textured tannins and medium+ acidity set the foundation while layers of red berries and wild flowers layer in breadth and depth. Delicious, complex and ready to enjoy from 2023 through 2030+. Date: June 2022; Rating: 96 Points; Cameron Douglas MS

Savaterre Pinot Noir 2021
Earthy, cherry, spice, dried rose and liquorice root, quite exotic with maybe, and don’t mind me, something of a quality Nebbiolo character about it. Dark cherry and spice, richness here and a little earthy, some blood orange, a light chew to supple powdery tannin, some high cocoa dark chocolate in the mix, and intriguing autumnal tones. Length is excellent. It really blossoms with time in glass, revealing more layers and complexity, yet what I like most is that it’s a wine of distinct character and personality. A very strong release. Date: Nov 2023; Alcohol: 13.5%; Price: $85; Closure: Screwcap; Drink: 2024-2035; Rated: 95+ Points; Gary Walsh; The Wine Front

Montalto Tuerong Block Pinot Noir 2020
Hand-picked, whole bunches, 14 days' carbonic maceration, then destemmed, 19 days for conclusion of fermentation, matured for 9 months in French barriques (30% new). The block of MV6 has a gentle north slope at 30–40m altitude. Splitting hairs, the colour is the most developed – and lightest – of the 4 Montalto pinots in this tasting, ex whole bunch, and has a highly fragrant fruit expression, spanning the cherry family, and complexed by whole bunch a la Simon Black. Drink to: 2032; Price: $70.00; Date Tasted: Sept 2021; Alcohol: 13.5%; Rating: 96 Points & Special Value Star; James Halliday Wine Companion