2021 Felton Road MacMuir Pinot Noir
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Tasting notes
The 2021 MacMuir Pinot Noir is the first vintage of this wine. The vineyard is on Felton Road to the west of the Calvert Vineyard and on heavy silt soils. On the seductive and gently reductive nose, there are pomegranate pearls, barley, cherry, poached strawberry, rosehip tea and earthy sweetness. In the mouth, the wine is excellent, full and firm but long and unfurling. A ripe finish gives breadth and intensity. There’s lots going on, and this is a worthy addition to the Felton Road Pinot Noir lineup. 14% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
Critic scores
Average Score
Decanter World Wine Awards
William Kelley (Robert Parker)
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Pinot Noir MacMuir feels like a work in progress. It's initially a relaxed, fluid style, offering sweet red cherry fruit and showing youthful mocha-like oak, but it is not quite as refined in terms of its tannic quality and togetherness. There's plenty of acidity that ties this together toward a focused, tighten-your-belt one notch kinda finish. Like we're all stuck in a very small space together.
Bright cherry juiciness on the nose comes with notes of crushed red and black berries, followed by toast and pepper. The palate redoubles on this spiciness and comes with firm but fine tannins that makes this come across as muscular and bold. This needs bottle age. The first release of this vineyard and the wine spent 13 months in French oak of which a quarter was new.
From another deep-silt vineyard 1 km east of the Elms vineyard on Felton Road. Dark crimson. Very reticent nose but suggests there’s lots under there. A finesse of texture plus acidity compensates well for the high alcohol. Savoury note on the end makes this very appetising. Probably worth keeping for a year or two. (JR)