Accolades & Reviews 2005 . . .

90/100 Felton Road Chardonnay 2004
Enticing creamy lees nose streaked with lemon. Very sleek and tight on the palate with plenty of texture from the handpicked grapes, high solid, wild yeast ferment. Only 10-15 per cent sees new wood. Firm tight clean nutty flavours with more citrus and mineral in the back end. Impressive young wine that should improve further in the bottle. Drink 2008 - 2010.

91/100 Felton Road Pinot Noir 2004
Central Otago, South Island, New Zealand
Big dark dense looking pinot. The fruit is juicy, the flavours ripe and sweet with strong black fruit and spicy, peppery undertones. Clean and opulent there is no barnyard, no Brettanomyces, no jammy flavours. Just pure spicy, carrot-top fruit. Big young and brash for a pinot but the future is bright.

100 Top New Releases – Huon Hooke and Bob Campbell

2004 Felton Road Chardonnay Barrel Fermented - 86 points
A cool Central Otago vintage has amplified the trademark mineral salts character in this wine. Fairly weighty and mouth-filling, it has gingery yeast lees, mealy and spicy oak flavours, plus grapefruit and citrus. Subtly powerful.

2004 Felton Road Pinot Noir - 88 points
A top-quality wine from a very challenging vintage. It’s rich and fleshy with spice, savoury plum and subtle, gamy flavours. One of the wine’s best features is its silken texture. Stylish and supple.

2004 Felton Road Dry Riesling - 90 points
Pale, green-tinged color. Pure aromas of mandarin orange and dusty stone. Juicy, lively and intense, with bracing flavors of apple, pear and stone. Classic dry, fruit-driven riesling with plenty of extract but not an ounce of unneeded fat. Finishes stony and bracing, with firm, palate-cleansing acidity. September/October 2005

2003 Felton Road Pinot Noir - 89 points
Good bright, deep red. Lively, perfumed aromas of red berries, herbs and spices, plus a rooty complexity. Lush, silky and concentrated but also juicy, spicy and sharply delineated, with impressive energy and pinot tang. The raspberry and wild strawberry flavors are complicated by rooty spices, fresh herbs and earth. Finishes juicy, ripe and gripping, with lovely persistence and a late note of blackberry. September/October 2005

2003 Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 3 - 91 points
Bright, full red. Pungent aromas of black cherry, minerals and spices, along with a peppery nuance. Aromatic, dry and brisk, with a core of spice that reminded me of a Dujac wine. Tangy, sexy, very primary pinot, at once silky and penetrating. Finishes long and firmly tannic, with lingering perfume. September/October 2005

2002 Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 5 - 91 points
Deep ruby-red. Complex aromas of black cherry, blackberry, sassafras, violet and fresh herbs; I would have placed this in the Morey/Chambolle neighborhood. Begins a bit underripe/overripe, but quickly shows superb dark cherry and blackberry fruit flavors along with mint, cola, licorice, underbrush and flowers. Lush, generous and fine-grained, but not at all overly sweet. In fact, this is downright serious pinot, finishing with sound acidity, firm tannic spine and excellent grip. September/October 2005

www.wineaccess.com/expert/tanzer

Felton Road Central Otago Pinot Noir 2004 (sc) Purple-black, very dense, quite startling for pinot - but this is young, just bottled pinot from a low yielding vintage. Opulent smelling and richly flavoured with terrific fruit concentration in the plum, black cherry spectrum forcing its way out from the tarry, earthy, savoury backbone with succulent velvety tannins, sweet creamy oak, warming alcohol, a lifted red fruits finish and a spicy aftertaste. There's a touch of chocolate, too, as it lingers. Very tight and youthful at this stage but fantastic potential. 14% alc. $46.95 . 22 Jun 2005.

Felton Road Barrel Fermented Central Otago Chardonnay 2004 (sc) Pale gold coloured with polished, toasty oak and mealy aromas and full-bodied, creamy stonefruit flavours with a rich mealy, nutty influence from aging on yeast lees and bright acidity on the toasty, creamy-textured finish. Well-balanced with plenty of length, quite Burgundian in many respects. 14% alc. $34.95. 22 Jun 2005.

Felton Road Riesling 2004 - Central Otago (sc) Pale coloured, fruity smelling, lightly floral, quite tangy in the palate and a little spritzy on the tongue, like sucking fizzy fruit lifesavers. Juicy, bright and spicy with a myriad of tangy, fresh citrus flavours and a delectable infusion of honey, a wonderfully pure Riesling, a classic example of the style and a treat to try. 9.5% alc. $27.95. 12 Jan 2005.

Felton Road Pinot Noir 2004
The 2004 Felton Road Pinot Noir from Central Otago is stunning already, tightly wound with dark cherry aromas, extremely fine tannins, and enough structure and power to ensure its cellaring worth.

Felton Road Riesling, Central Otago 2004.
A powerful wine with intense floral and mandarin aromas. An explosion of exotic tropical fruit, particularly pineapple, on the palate is fully integrated with the wine's natural high acidity. 2-5 years.

Felton Road Pinot Noir 2003 $70
A thoroughly gorgeous Central Otago pinot, fairly dark and sweetly ripe, with aromas of black cherry plus some burgundy-like complexity. The palate is intense, powerfully flavoured and structured, with a long, long finish. Most impressive - and this is just the base-level pinot. Food slow-roasted duck. Stockist Best Cellars, East Sydney

Huon Hooke

The pick of the wines -

2004 Felton Road Riesling, Bannockburn, Central Otago - a grippy, zesty 'Dry Riesling' was followed by this heavenly wine. Named 'Riesling' rather unconfusingly, this is another blindingly pulchritudinous wine with spectacular balance and every flavour box ticked. Is it perfect? Honestly, yes it is. There are very few Rieslings in the world that warrant a 20/20 score in, but this one does. In fact it is the finest Kiwi Riesling I have ever tasted. Only 450 cases were made, sadly, and I would consider a few years 'inside' if it meant getting my hands on one.

2004 Felton Road Block 1 Riesling, Bannockburn, Central Otago - is also worthy of a mention. Not only did it complete the most excellent trio of New Zealand Rieslings I have seen, but it is another of these wines that sports staggering levels of residual (63 grams) but looks terrifically fit (a 'Rachel Weisz', if that's possible). This time there are only 100 cases to fight over! This is incredibly serious winemaking and it is hard to put into words just how exciting it is to taste wines of this calibre, one after another, in the same estate. You have to go to Burgundy (and then there are only a few estates) to come close to the number of consecutive 'hits' that winemaker Blair Walter is capable of.

2003 Felton Road Block 2 Chardonnay, Bannockburn, Central Otago - Three Chardonnays followed the three Rieslings and each was a joy. 'Straight 2004' is calm, controlled, sexy and simmering with passion - you have to look for it, but if you put the effort in you will be rewarded. Given a year this will blossom - this is phenomenal for an unoaked wine! '2003 Barrel', as I call it, was expressive, and all encompassing, with masses of ebullient charm and not a small amount of precociousness. The embonpoint alone is breathtaking. But my chosen wine is the '2003 Block 2', and it is a blinder. It underwent this phenomenal gestation - straight to barrel, wild ferment, malo in barrel, lees stirring, no racking, low sulphur, cold-stabilization, unracked, unfiltered, bottled. The result is a wine of spectacular density, unbelievable calm and incredible IQ. This is up there with Kumeu's finest and that means it is one of the most impressive NZ Chards I have seen!

2003 Felton Road Pinot Noir, Bannockburn, Central Otago - Fantastic fruit on the nose and raucous appeal on the palate signal yet another great 'Estate Pinot' from Felton Road. The purity of plum, cherry and berry fruit and sheer sexiness of flavour and length make this one of the greats. I often feel that this wine is, certainly in value terms, is the 'best' in the portfolio. But as you move to the two Block wines, you see just how far Felton Road can push this variety. If you haven't tasted Felton Pinot before, start here. At ten pounds a bottle cheaper than the others this is a stunning wine. If you have, start here anyway, as this is the finest vintage of 'Estate' I have seen. But if you want more, then go for one of the next wines….

2003 Felton Road Block 3 Pinot Noir, Bannockburn, Central Otago - this is another exceptionally attractive (almost carnally essential) wine, with unbelievably serious fruit, texture, length, balance and style. And that is the crux of Block 3. It is an enviably stylish wine - a David Niven. Nothing is out of place or overstated. This is an effortlessly honed wine, with breeding and unfathomable complexity.

2003 Felton Road Block 5 Pinot Noir, Bannockburn, Central Otago - I have always been a Block 3 kinda guy, because I have always felt that Block 5 is technically brilliant but not naturally gifted, but the 2003 is a turning point for me. While this wine is tighter and certainly more mineral than Block 3, it is also starting to get some self-confidence and grooming as well as its staggering intellect. This is a challenging wine, but it is starting to give as well as take and that makes for a very attractive combination. You will have to wait for this to open. While Block 3 is immediately the life and soul of the party Block 5 must wait for the correct partner to dance and this often takes two or more years. But I have a feeling that 2003 Block 5 will turn out to be absolutely mesmerizing when the duckling / swan thing is complete.

2003 Cornish Point Vineyard Pinot Noir, Central Otago - is the first proper vintage from Nigel Greenings incredible vineyard. In previous years, the fruit came from the Drystone Vineyard in Gibbston Valley, but somehow this wine, now sensing it is at home, has pulled out all the stops. There is texture, smooth cherry fruit and a modernity and excitement to it that is attractive. Well made and brimming with self-belief, this is a fine and true inaugural vintage for Cornish Point.

Conclusion - I tasted with Nigel Greening, owner, and Blair Walter, General Manager and Winemaker. I asked Blair Walter, the exceptionally talented man behind incredible these wines, how he does it. He replied 'I don't f*** about, I let the wine make itself'. Like a great chef he has the finest raw materials and then does his utmost to allow them to express themselves fully in the finished wines. It works. Blair drove me around the estate and this is a truly special place, but there is no doubt that he is Otago's Gandalf, as these wines are magical. Blair also gave me a concise breakdown of the last three vintages for you -
2002 - 'The Big Easy' - moderate yields, small berries, picked pretty early, even before Martinborough.
2003 - Bigger yields, healthy and cool approaching harvest, so the best sites really won through, and the worst sites couldn't hack the cold.
2004 - Nov 18th and 28th serious frosts (very late) and a lot of the flat vineyards got raided. A good summer was followed by a wet (three times normal) February, so rot was a problem with Riesling. There was a big frost before Easter (and Gibbston got hit) and anyone that harvested after that did well.

Reviewed by Matthew Jukes

Central Otago. Why Pinot lovers need to know what these words mean
Modern winemaking in Central Otago began less than three decades ago, and it wasn't until the founding of Felton Road in 1991 and the release of its first vintage (1997) of Block 3 Pinot Noir that the world really took notice. The wine was an instant hit in New York City and London.

Top 10 From New Zealand:
Greatest Wine Producers: Felton Road - second
Greatest Quality Wines: Felton Road 2002 Pinot Noir Block 5 - First
Best Bargains: Felton Road 2003 Dry Riesling - Fourth
Most Exciting or Unusual Finds: Felton Road 2003 Vin Gris - Third

2003 Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 3 18 ˝ (*****) Bannockburn, Central Otago, New Zealand: 14%; $65 [ screwcap; $56 ex vineyard, when available; www.feltonroad.com ] A full pinot noir ruby, fractionally deeper than the standard Felton, lighter than the Block 5. Bouquet is the most complete statement of pinot noir on the day, combining deep florals as in dark roses, with black cherries in profusion. There is no trace of pennyroyal adding spurious aromatics, and the oaking is much subtler than some previous Block wines. Palate follows through perfectly, rich and crunchy cherries, a little more new oak now apparent, excellent acid balance. This looks to me like the fruit of a perfect season for pinot noir in Otago, much more floral, piquant and aromatic than the sometimes over-ripe, ponderous, yet widely-hyped 2002s. Cellar 5 - 12 years. GK 11/04

2003 Felton Road Pinot Noir 18 (**** ) Bannockburn, Central Otago, New Zealand: 14%; $47 [ screwcap; $40 ex vineyard; www.feltonroad.com Big pinot noir ruby. Bouquet on this Felton is initially understated, but breathes to be even more fragrant than the Block 3, the florals sweeter and stronger, nearly perfumed and buddleia-like. Palate is total cherries red and black, seemingly more aromatic than the richer Block 3, wonderfully varietal. This shows beautiful oaking, but is not quite as concentrated as the Block 3. Cellar 5 - 10 years. Tasted twice. GK 11/04