2016 Escarpment Pinot Noir Kupe
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Tasting notes
From a closely planted vineyard on Te Muna Road, the 2016 Kupe Pinot Noir offers an incredible bouquet of lavender potpourri and ripe black cherries. It's full-bodied and rich without seeming heavy at all, the ripeness balanced by fresh notes of herbs and soft tannins. No doubt some purists will quibble with the level of ripeness (it's labeled at 14.5% alcohol), but to my mind, there is no arguing with the hedonistic pleasure ride this wine delivers. And while it's approachable now, the tannins that appear on the finish suggest at least a decade of positive evolution ahead.
Critic scores
Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate
About the producer
Based in Martinborough, Escarpment is one of New Zealand’s leading producers of Pinot Noir. The estate’s top cuvée Kupe is widely regarded as a benchmark example of the region’s potential for producing world-class Pinot Noir.