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Rippon Central Otago Pinot Noir 2006 First things first, this wines needs a really good decant. 5 plus hours to really open up. It is the opposite to most Central Otago Pinot Noirs'; it is not opulent and rich, rather quite stalky with plenty of savoriness. It is a wine that I like but I am wondering whether it is a style that has univeral appeal? If you like Central Otago Pinot then you probably won't like this wine. If you like Pinot that ripe and full without fruit sweetness then this is a wine for you. Dark purple in colour, this is quite closed to begin with on the nose with sour cherries, minerals, earth and tomato leaf. The palate is quite full but savoury with dark cherries, rhubarb, spice, earth, tingling acidity and masculine tannins. This is a wine that will age very well and I would have no troubles holding this for 5-8 years. 13% alcohol, sealed with Diam. 95 points Anthony D'Anna The stunning 2006 Pinot Noir is a realization of everything I suspect Rolfe dreamt of when planting the first vines in the early 1980’s. Using 20% whole clusters and matured for 18 months in 30% new French oak, this wine is distinguished by its spine-tingling tension and tautness on the palate. Its ethereal balance and intensity of fruit suggest this could easily age over 10+ years. If ever there was a producer that gave a tantalizing glimpse of what New Zealand Pinot Noir can achieve with mature vines i.e. over 20-years in age, then it is Rippon Vineyard, whose first, pioneering block was planted on schist soils by Rolfe Mills back in 1981 in Wanaka, Central Otago. The winemaking is now directed by Rolfe’s ambitious son Nick Mills. His tenures in Burgundy with the likes of Jean-Jacques Confuron and Domaine de la Romanee-Conti are evidenced in Nick’s occasionally superlative wines. Their 15-hectares of vineyard are now run under biodynamic principles although they are not as yet officially certified. 95 points Neal Martin Wine Advocate Issue #176 Apr 2008 A cold and blustery flowering period followed by a classic Central Otago summer lends itself to compact with concentration and mid-palate drive. Issued from vines from 14-23 years old, this wine spent 17 months (two winters) in barrel. The second winter provides a natural clarification, and the wine is run into bottle without filtering or fining. In 1974, Lois and the late Rolfe Mills moved back to the family farm in Wanaka. Acting largely on a hunch born in the schist slopes of the Douro Valley many years earlier, they planted a few short rows of experimental vines on a small steep bank above their house. Despite the mostly negative opinions of the viticultural experts of the time, the climate data that Rolfe collected was encouragement enough for them to plant their first commercial vineyard block in 1981. The growing belief they had in the site’s potential to produce fine wine was soon to be realised.