Top 20: Pinot Noir

During the cooler month of September, drinks' very own Tasting Bench, comprising nine industry experts, tasted 65 of the latest wines from Pinot Noir producers in Australia and New Zealand. Here are the Top 20, ranging from RRP $80 a bottle to just $20 and categorised by region. All distributors are listed so that you can arrange stock before these wines run out!

The Tasting Bench: Anna Mantchakidi DipWSET & National Sales Support, Taylors Wines; Angela Pursey, WSET Level 2 & Senior Brand Manager - International, Taylors Wines; Ben Moechtar, Certified Sommelier; Brian Olson, Communications Manager, Taylors Wines; Katherine Candy, National Wine Specialist, Pernod Ricard Australia; Lisa Webber DipWSET & BSc Viticulture & Oenology; Neil Hadley MW; Peter Nixon, Dan Murphy's Wine Panel; and Travis Fuller, Senior Wine Show Judge & Marketing Manager ANZP, Accolade Wines.

Tasting Bench: Top 20 Pinot Noir

Tyrrell’s Ra Nui TOA Pinot Noir 2013, Central Otago
RRP: $38
Distributor: Tyrrell’s Wines
Lifted clove and red cherry notes. Well-balanced. Nice palate weight.

Wild Earth Wines Pinot Noir 2012, Central Otago
RRP: $42
Distributor: West Coast Wine Cellars (WA), Crush Fine Wines (VIC/SA/QLD/NSW), Liquor Net (QLD)
Good red colour, showing some development. Attractive nose with varietal distinction. Rounded and juicy palate. Balanced body and structure. Drinking well now and plenty to like.

Villa Maria Cellar Selection Pinot Noir 2014, Marlborough
RRP: $34.90
Distributor: Villa Maria
Vivid, youthful purple. Distinctive black cherry and violet perfumes. Ripe and generous palate. Juicy fruit with tight background structure.

Villa Maria Southern Clays Pinot Noir 2011, Marlborough
RRP: $64.90
Distributor: Villa Maria
Good, deep, dimensional nose. Velvety tannins frame generous and savoury fruit on the palate. A very good wine.

Tyrrell’s Ra Nui Pinot Noir 2013, Wairau Valley
RRP: $33
Distributor: Tyrrell’s Wines
Attractive nose with blood orange notes. Generous and juicy with a creamy and soft backdrop. Very pleasant, if not complex. Drinking well now.

Tamar Ridge Pinot Noir 2014, Tasmania
RRP: $29.99
Distributor: Brown Brothers
Light raspberry and dark cherry aromas. Good plummy fruit on the palate with some spice and depth. Enjoyable drinking with nice complexity on the finish.

Eddystone Point Pinot Noir 2015, Tasmania
RRP: $30
Distributor: Accolade Wines
Clean, clear ruby colour. Plum, ripe red berries and warm spice on the nose. Good length and well balanced.

Last Horizon Tamar Valley Pinot Noir 2015, Tasmania
RRP: $31
Distributor: McWilliam’s Wines
A distinctive nose with mint leaf notes. Flavours of mint, chocolate and berries. An unusual style of pinot noir!

Bay of Fires Pinot Noir 2015, Tasmania
RRP: $45
Distributor: Accolade Wines
A generous nose with lively dark cherry fruit. Juicy and ripe on the palate. Firm tannins. A good, generous expression of this variety.

Bress 2014 Gold Chook Macedon Pinot Noir 2014, Victoria
RRP: $45
Distributor: Vinous Solutions
Red berry and cherry spice. A more muscular and firm mid-palate with delicate red fruit and a savoury finish.

Akarua Pinot Noir 2015, Bannockburn
RRP: $48
Distributor: Vinous Solutions (NSW), The Wine Tradition (QLD), Fine Drop Wines (TAS)
A nose of forest floor and mushroom. Structured whole bunch stems and cherry. A firm, yet powerful wine. Brooding and youthful.

2013 Brokenwood Indigo Vineyard Pinot Noir 2013, Beechworth
RRP: $55
Distributor: Samuel Smith & Son
Ruby red cherry and crimson hues. Aromas of savoury and spice dominate rhubarb and plum. This is elegant and showing good evolution. Fresh and fine with lingering, chalky tannin.

Soho Road Pinot Noir 2015, Bellarine Peninsula
RRP: $36
Distributor: Domaine Wine Shippers
Bright, peppery, red cherry and some aldehyde musk on the nose. Sweet entry onto the palate followed by fine and perfumed musk, roses, cherry, rhubarb and spice. Shows regional character.

Handpicked Collection Mornington Peninsula Pinot Noir 2015, Mornington Peninsula
RRP: $59.99
Distributor: DMG Fine Wine
This wine shows all of the hallmarks of a good pinot noir. Silky, sweet entry, moving from fruity to savoury.

Handpicked Capella Pinot Noir 2014, Mornington Peninsula
RRP: $79,99
Distributor: DMG Fine Wine
Bright, red fruits lead a perfumed nose with a touch of spice and underlying savoury notes. A delicious wine, well structured, elegant and restraint.

De Bortoli Yarra Valley Estate Grown Pinot Noir 2015, Yarra Valley
RRP: $25
Distributor: De Bortoli Wines
Lifted cherry spice. Soft, silky mid-palate with layers of flavour. Long to finish.

Santolin Syme on Yarra Vineyard Pinot Noir 2015 (available from January 2017), Yarra Valley
RRP: $40
Distributor: Ergo Wines (Sydney/Canberra), Ex Cellar Agencies (Melbourne)
A bright and ripe nose full of spice and dark fruits. Floral. Good diversity and spice.

Santolin Willowlake Vineyard Pinot Noir 2015 (available from January 2017), Yarra Valley
RRP: $40
Distributor: Ergo Wines (Sydney/Canberra), Ex Cellar Agencies (Melbourne)
Brooding dark fruits and spice. Nice and tight with good line – long.

Taylors Estate Pinot Noir 2015, Adelaide Hills
RRP: $20
Distributor: Taylors Wines
An aroma of plums, damson, smoke, wood and spice. This is a great wine – silky, slurpy, characterful and complex. Great value. Drink up!

Tomich Woodside Vineyard Pinot Noir 2015, Adelaide Hills
RRP: $30
Distributor: Festival City (SA), Fesq & Company (NSW/VIC/ QLD)
Plums, briar, spice and sour cherry aromas. Silky and sweet entry onto the palate, followed by layers of simple fruit. Finishes dry and structured.