Halliday 96 – best vintage ever:
Estate-grown fruit, 20–25% whole bunches, matured in 20% new hogsheads. A bright crimson ruby. Scented with ripe raspberries, black cherry, star anise and just a little rosewater. On the palate, this is ripe without being heavy or rich, with bright acidity and well-handled, whole-bunch, savoury tannins. A delicious wine for hedonists and intellectuals alike.
And rated above even the Tolpuddle by British Burgundy expert Jasper Morris:
Quite seductive from the outset, with pure red cherry, pomegranate, and riverstone minerality sitting above savoury undergrowth to start, followed by subtle raspberry leaf, rhubarb, delicate twiggy spice, and a whisper of black tea. It needs some coaxing out of the glass, but what’s there is alluring and fine. The palate shows a similar restraint, with a distinctly mineral and bright feel. Raspberry coulis, red cherry, pomegranate, and cherry-pit minerality hover above a delicate sheath of foresty, earthy notes. There’s good sap and snap to an anchoring of crunchy tannins, which put a chalky frame around a finish of long length. This is at once lithesome, mineral, and complex, with restrained allure that draws you into the glass.
As the winery explains:
As the name suggests, this wine comes from a densely planted portion of Timo’s Bloody Hill vineyard, where vines are positioned only 75 cm apart from each other. Timo likes to use a proportion of whole bunch to give his wines a particular stalky savoriness, which is very much a trademark of his Pinots. For this cuvee he does an 100% whole bunch ferment with a portion of the grapes, and blends that back with the destemmed component. The ratio of each changes with every vintage. The finished wine has fragrant whole bunch characteristics, fresh red fruit, and plenty of spice. Delicious and balanced, with a very long finish.
With less than 200 cases made, this one – like all of Mayer’s wines – is both in tremendous worldwide demand and quite hard to find.
