In having to put together the tasting notes for the 2003 – 2012 Pinot Noir vertical tasting, I felt that notes just don't give enough justice to wines themselves and the evening itself.

For me it was fantastic to get to know and understand the wines and the progression from the start of producing Pinot Noir from the Schubert vineyards and the progression.

We set out to look at 10 years of Pinot Noir of both the Marion's Vineyard and Block B wines. With 2003 vintage being the first official Pinot Noir harvest from our vineyard in East Taratahi. The objective was to view the progression of the wine over time and to get a full understanding of the wines style as they age. Also as always for the pleasure of tasting Pinot Noir in good company.

Firstly we worked our way through from 2003 to 2012 of Marion's Vineyard Pinot Noir. It felt like we were part of the story taking our time and understanding each of the wines. All the wines had their own story to tell but there was definitely a connective line, like something that is passed on through the generations of a family, that linked all the vintages together. We could see vintage variations, winemaker changes and expression of the site through the age of the vines over time. I felt these wines showed a promising start and an exciting future of winemaking for Schubert wines. The Marion's Vineyard Pinot Noir has been predominantly been a clonal blend of the Pommard and the Abel clone, with slight variations depending on the vintages. This clonal decision was made early on in Schubert's winemaking history. Marion's Vineyard Pinot Noir revealed finesse, texture and sense of style that was evident through all the wines that developed more depth over time. Marion's Vineyard Pinot Noir held her own with grace and poise.
The final flight of the night was to review 10 years of Schubert Block B Pinot Noir 2003 through to 2012. Block B Pinot Noir in itself is power house, that is bold and full of life. What took me by surprise that right from the concept in 2003 Block B held your attention with its concentrated complex savoury core and structure that continues throughout all of the years. The clonal denomination for the Block B is predominantly the Dijon clones, this decision was made at the conception of the Block B with some variations when required. As the years evolved a rich texture of spice and smoked earth and game came to play. These wines in themselves have a great distance to go and such a promising future.
It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to try these wines, with both Marion and Kai and observe their expressions overnight when reflecting on the vintage it was. There was great joy around the table once we could sit back reflect on what we had tasted with a vision of what was to come.
To top the night off Kai had prepared the best braised beef cheeks ever to match with the wines consumed. It was the perfect match to a legendary tasting.

              written by Vanessa Paton

To read more in detail the vertical tasting notes of the Pinot Noir Marion's Vineyard click here.

To read more in detail the vertical tasting notes of the Pinot Noir Block B click here.