2005 Dry River Pinot Noir

Deep ruby-colored, the 2005 Pinot Noir offers mulberries, kirsch, anise and chocolate aromas with hints of spice box and menthol. With crisp acid and low levels of fine tannins, it has great intensity and still shows a lot of fruit through the long finish. It will benefit from 4-6 more years of cellaring. Neil McCallum was one of the Martinborough wine pioneers, planting some of the first vineyards in Martinborough at Dry River in 1978 and remaining with this winery until his departure in 2011. For Dry River, the biggest gains in recent years have come from McCallum’s refining their vineyard techniques. In fact, very few changes have happened in the winery over the years (well, except for the cross-flow filter, of course). It’s a curious vineyard to look at – I don’t think I have ever seen Pinot vines so big! Burgundian examples look like bonsais next to these Pinot trees splayed out on a Scott Henry trellis. Still, the ultimate proof is in the taste, and in terms of quality Dry River Pinots are right up there. I truly hope that the new team can look to one day wean themselves off that cross-flow filter though, at least for the Pinot. Imported by RO Imports LLC, New York, NY; tel. (212) 916-3320; fax (212) 916-3306