Lawson's Dry Hills Reserve Pinot Noir 2020

Reviews & Accolades

Global Pinot Noir Masters 2024: Gold. 

New Zealand International Wine Show 2022: Gold.

Cameron Douglas MS: 94/100.  Fragrant, varietal, floral, fruity and complex bouquet. A wine with a definitive signature of place and winemaking. A dry wine touches the palate then a flourish of red cherry, spice and raspberry flavours begin to emerge. Additional flavours of dried spice and wood smoke, boysenberry and some plum layer in slowly as the wine opens out in glass. Balanced and well made with a lengthy finish. Best drinking from 2024 through 2032+.

James Suckling (JamesSuckling.com): 92/100. Aromas of red and black cherries, oolong and bark. Medium- to full-bodied with silky tannins. I like the concentration here which is not overdone, but solid and provides good intensity and length to the rounded red fruit. Sustainable. Drink now.

Tasting Note

Dark, red berry and black cherry aromas combine with smoky vanilla, oaky notes and a hint of spice. The palate is round and generous with lovely bright berry, cherry flavours and gentle, sweet vanilla notes. This wine has lovely weight and length, offering a wonderful balance of power and elegance.

Aromas and flavours:

Additional information

Type: red wine

Grape varial: 100% Pinot Noir

Food match: Soft and supple, this wine is lovely with red meat, as well as full- flavour chicken and pork dishes and game. Ideal with chargrilled foods, roasted vegetables and any earthy flavours such as beans and lentils. Loves toasted spices such as cumin, star anise, paprika and herbs like oregano, thyme and sage.

Wine region: Marlborough, New Zealand.

Vineyards: This wine is sourced from the winery's two Waihopai Valley vineyards and the Tilly’s Block on Paynters Road. These vineyards are all within the Southern valleys sub-region where clay soils and low rain fall produce excellent Pinot. The final blend was comprised of clone 5, 667, 115 and 777. The vines are cropped at low levels which requires careful pruning, canopy management and fruit-thinning. The vines are carefully nurtured to ensure perfect ripeness together with concentrated flavours that echo the varietal and the place it was grown.

Winemaking: The fruit was harvested into open-top fermenters for a three-to- six-day cold maceration before the warm, alcoholic fermentation. The cap of skins that form on top was punched down by hand, three times a day, to encourage maximum flavour and colour. The wine was then left on skins for between seven and 14-days post ferment, before pressing to a mixture of French oak barriques (224 litres) and puncheons (500 litres) of which 25% were new. After ten months maturation, the best clones and barrels were selected for this wine.

Alcohol: 14% vol

Residual sugar: 0 g/l

Bottle size: 0.75l

Notice: contains sulphites.

Cellaring potential: 2026+

Closure: Screwcap

Produced and bottled by: Lawson's Dry Hills Wines Limited, PO Box 4020, Redwood Village,Blenheim 7242, Neuseeland