Australia scoops 11 medals at the Pinot Noir Masters 2017

Australia has scooped 11 medals and one Master award at the drinks business Pinot Noir Masters 2017. 

drinks business notes: "Of all the Global Masters tastings we run – and it’s an extensive series covering noble grapes and major wine styles – it is the Pinot Noir competition that yields the greatest range of results.

"Within the same flight you might find a group of judges either grimacing or grinning, depending on whether the sample had caused great offence or glorious pleasure.

"Unlike, say Cabernet Sauvignon, where there are gradations of quality and style, and few failures, Pinot Noir seems a boom-or-bust grape – it either excites with perfume and sweet berry fruit, or severely disappoints with a thin body and unripe aromas."

The Australian wine that caused the most glorious pleasure was the Fleurieu Peninsula's Tapanappa Pinot Noir 2015, which took out a Master award.

The Master award is the ultimate accolade, given only to exceptional wines in the tasting. Only six wines were given Master status in the 2017 tasting. 

Tapanappa winemaker Brian Croser told the Wall Street Journal in 2015: “The assumption has always been that Australia is a very hot desert country that can’t produce Pinot Noir. But in Australia we have a rich pool of cool-climate areas that are not fully appreciated.”

The biggest swag of medals, however, went to De Bortoli, which took home a Bronze, two Silver and a Gold. 

It was awarded Gold for its Yarra Valley Estate Pinot Noir 2015. 

Here is the full list of Aussie winners:

Unoaked red Pinot Noir
£10-£15
De Bortoli Wines - Villages Pinot Noir 2016 (Bronze)
£15-£20
De Bortoli Wines - Yarra Valley Estate Pinot Noir 2015 (Gold)
£20-£30
De Bortoli Wines - Riorret The Abbey 2012 (Silver)
De Bortoli Wines - PHI Pinot Noir 2013 (Silver)
Oaked red Pinot Noir
£10-£15
McPherson Wines - MWC Pinot Noir 2015 (Bronze)
£20-£30
Tapanappa - Fleurieu Peninsula Pinot Noir 2015 (Master)
Burch Family Wines Marchand & Burch Pinot Noir 2015 (Gold)
Australian Vintage - Nepenthe ‘The Good Doctor’ Pinot Noir 2015 (Silver)
£30-£50
Shadowfax Winery - Little Hampton Pinot Noir 2015 (Gold)
Tapanappa - Foggy Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir 2014 (Gold)
Over £50
Moorooduc Estate - The Moorooduc McIntyre Pinot Noir 2014 (Gold)