Tasting the 2023s from Felton Road, a leading winery from New Zealand’s Central Otago region
Nicola Greening was in town to show off the 2023s from star Central Otago winegrower Felton Road. This was a hot year but it was saved from being too hot with a bit of rain (43 mm over a couple of weeks) and cooler conditions in February and then continuing to just before harvest in March which helped slow things down a bit. They haven’t had a properly hot vintage in Central since 2018, but until the rain and cooler conditions they were worried that this would be one. The results are pretty good, and Block 3 in particular showed really well here.
For more context see this big retrospective on Felton Road, with full history, and this report on two visits.
Felton Road Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2023
Wonderfully chiselled aromatics with sweet red cherries and plums, and a nice spicy, almost peppery twist. The palate has a rich, sweet core with bold, almost meaty cherry and raspberry fruit and some soft wild strawberry richness. It’s very seductive and more-ish, showing massive drinkability. Finishes with a spicy twist. 94/100
Felton Road Cornish Point Pinot Noir 2023
There’s a core of sweet fruit here: it’s ripe and generous, with raspberry and sour cherry, and it’s quite compact and unfurled despite the ripeness. Has a bit of grunt with some spicy detail and a touch of tarriness on the finish. This could evolve nicely. Offers a lot of immediate pleasure now though. 94/100
Felton Road Calvert Pinot Noir 2023
There’s a real beauty to this wine. There’s lots of sweet cherry and raspberry fruit with nice texture. There’s lovely sour cherry on the finish with a nice tang and a hint of meatiness, but also some floral detail. Nice tannic structure and some stewed strawberry on the finish adding sweetness and helping this drink well young. This has elegance. 95/100
Felton Road MacMuir Vineyard Pinot Noir 2023
There’s freshness and precision here with compact red berry and cherry fruit. Has a meaty, savoury dimension with tangy sour cherry fruit and nice grip. Substantial tannin here with a bit of grippiness evident. Very stylish and one for ageing. 95/100
Felton Road Block 3 Pinot Noir 2023
A complete Pinot Noir, with ripe cherry and berry fruits but also some sour cherry and nice acidity keeping the sweetness in check. Tangy and lively with some firm structure. Has polish, but not too much of it. Multidimensional. 96/100
Felton Road Block 5 Pinot Noir 2023
Concentrated with nice density to the sweet berry and cherry fruit, with some grip on the finish. It’s floral, ripe and alluring but also has lovely structure, finishing quite tight. This could age in interesting ways. Some savoury hints with clove, pepper and dried herbs. 96/100
Felton Road Bannockburn Chardonnay 2023
Fresh and detailed with subtle pear and peach fruit as well as some citrus, with a touch of cabbage. Nice acidity with very subtle oak influence. Stylish. 92/100
Felton Road Block 2 Chardonnay 2023
Lovely weight here with a hint of aniseed under the sweet pear and citrus fruit. Tangy with some white peach in the mix, and a nice acid line. Subtly mealy, with a mineral twist. 94/100
Felton Road Block 6 Chardonnay 2023
There’s good concentration here with some spicy oak in the background. Bold citrus and pear fruit with a touch of peachiness, showing some spicy complexity and nice concentrated flavours, finishing with good acidity. Stylish stuff. 94/100
Felton Road Dry Riesling 2023
Concentrated and refined with bold lemon and lime fruit with nice acidity. Has good acidity with a bit of structure. Nice bite here. 92/100
Felton Road Bannockburn Riesling 2023
Off dry, bold, but still delicate with lemon and lime, some honeyed richness, nice melony depth and a touch of apricot. Lovely concentration and intensity here with a fine mineral finish. 94/100
Felton Road Block 1 Riesling 2023
Concentrated and intense with nice sweet pear and peach fruit, showing lovely depth. Off-dry but not overly sweet. Concentrated, harmonious and finishing long. 94/100
