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Buy OnlineTrophy for Best in Show – Decanter World Wine Awards 2024
Gold Medal & 97/100 – Decanter World Wine Awards 2024
Gold Medal & 95/100 – International Wine Challenge 2024
Well known Central Otago wine maker Matt Connell is now making the wines for Alexandra based McArthur Ridge and there's a marked step up in quality. The previous 2021 vintage picked up no less than 5 Trophies in major wine shows across the globe we reckon the 2022 is even better than that wine – and now confirmed by winning Trophy for Best in Show at the 2024 Decanter World Wine Awards! This is great buying for a wine of this level.
Winery notes (2022 Vintage)
"Southern Tor is the name given to exposed rock mass thought to be formed by freeze-thaw weathering found throughout the Alexandra region. Located in the heart of this unforgiving mountainous region, Central Otago sits the expansive vineyard of McArthur Ridge. The cool climate and gently sloping Brassknocker soils combine to deliver what some say to be amongst the best vineyards in the world for growing Pinot Noir. Optimal vineyard management and diligence allows for our grape harvest at peak flavour potential.
Ruby red in colour, this wine has a bouquet of savoury red berry fruit, black cherry and vanilla that combine with aromas of black forest berries, cloves and dark violets, finishing with soft stony notes. Dry on the palate with a core of fruit, savoury tannins give it a great texture. The oak influence is obvious with baking spices, brown sugar and smokiness. We expect this wine to improve further with careful cellaring over the next 7-10 years."
97/100 Decanter World Wine Awards Judges' Comments (2022 Vintage)
"We may not have found any Burgundian Pinot Noir wines to feature in this year’s Best In Show selection, but three Pinots from the Southern Hemisphere goes some way to compensate. This example from the Alexandra Basin sub-region shows why there is so much excitement about Central Otago. It’s a translucent dark red in colour, with articulate aromas of warm red berries, red cherries and root spice. It’s softly articulated on the palate and sweet-fruited, with great grace and poise. The wine’s structure comes more prominently from its acidity than from its relatively discreet tannin profile. In just two years, it has already begun to soften and open; look out for stones and a herbal complexity as well as root spice on the finish."
95/100 IWC Judges' Comments (2022 Vintage)
"Cornucopia of red fruits, cranberry, cherry and fresh raspberries, velvety texture but wonderful structure, beautifully seductive wine. Delicious smoky hints but fantastic perfume. Textbook example."
Rated Excellent & 94+/100 Cameron Douglas MS, June 2024 (2022 Vintage)
"A vibrant and youthful core of fruit and scents of spice with a savoury frame touches the senses first. Aromas of wild dried herbs and dried raspberry, black currant, lees and earth follow with a leesy reductive power. Dry on the palate with core flavours driven by ripe berry fruit flavours tempered by tannins and acidity, texture and mouthfeel. Well made, very youthful still, a wine that needs time to settle and integrate. It does deliver lots of promise too and will work well with food. Best drinking from late 2026 through 2033+. Tasted over 3 days, the poise and complexity improves, I expect this wine will win the hearts and palate of many."
