Ten Minutes By Tractor 10X Pinot Noir Mornington Peninsula – 2015

As with its sister Chardonnay, the 10X Pinot Noir has to live up to some spectacular competition in the form of its Estate and single vineyard companions. It does this admirably by providing a surprisingly substantial glimpse of the higher tier wines, while never losing sight of the need to remain its own wine. True Pinot lovers will go wild at the smell of this, not just because it’s deep and rich and incredibly varietal, but because only a few years ago it was almost impossible to find Pinot this good at this price point. Rejoice in this, then, and its deep aromas of plum flesh and spice, cola and undergrowth. There’s a richness here that suggests immediate drinking pleasure, yet complexity is there and rewards extended nosing. If richness is the key word for the aroma, so too the palate, though it’s here things become more complex. There’s significant density of fruit flavour – dark berries and plum skins and spice – so much so that one might worry for a second it’s a simple fruit bomb. Not so. From mid-palate onwards, masses of gorgeous textural tannin emerge, creating a velvet ride on which the wine’s flavours roll smoothly through. Ever envisaged fine dining while sitting on a picnic rug? That’s this wine, in a nutshell: generous to a fault and held together by surprisingly strong bones