Lethbridge Suma Park Pinot Noir 2023

There are few tales as impressive as that of Lethbridge Wines. Ray Nadeson and Maree Collis were both successful medical researchers before succumbing to their desire to create a vineyard and winery in Geelong. They planted vines on their own rootstocks, built a straw-bale winery and house, and farmed the land according to biodynamic beliefs. Their wines are powerful, structured, pure and long-lived. Lethbridge Suma Park Pinot Noir is sourced from a limestone escarpment site at Marcus Hill on the Bellarine Peninsula, where thin red clay loam and buckshot over limestone support MV6 vines planted in 1999. The wine is hand-picked and wild-fermented with around 50% whole bunches, then matured in 50% new French oak and bottled un-fined and unfiltered. The 2023 vintage was cool, wet, and low-yielding with a long ripening season, producing bright, elegant wines with fine balance and high natural acidity, with the Bellarine Peninsula noted for delivering depth and flavour. The result is a Pinot Noir of lifted red fruit, savoury complexity, and a finely structured, mineral-tinged palate. "From a vineyard on the Bellarine facing the ocean as opposed to the bay. A bright ruby red. A pure-fruited and perfumed bouquet of red fruits, lavender and allspice. Very bright and youthful on the medium-bodied, gently structured palate. An elegant and persistent wine to drink now and over the next 10 years." 96pts | Philip Rich | Halliday Wine Companion "Floral, pretty and delicate, with aromas of bright red fruits, rose petals, blood oranges, violets and a touch of earth and spice. The palate is refined and pure, with crunchy tannins, bright acidity and a mineral undertone. Really expressive and charming, with plenty of pinot nuances. 50% whole-cluster fermentation." 96pts | JamesSuckling.com