Amisfield Estate Pinot Noir / 2023 / 750mL

The Amisfield Estate Pinot Noir 2023 is a fragrant, medium-bodied Central Otago Pinot Noir that leads with dark cherry and plum rather than sheer power. Grown on Amisfield's estate vineyard beneath the Pisa Range, it carries the savoury edge that marks good Central Otago Pinot Noir.

The nose opens on black cherry, damson and raspberry, with dried thyme and a faint gravelly, stony note underneath. Air brings out a darker, spicier side — clove, crushed violet and a little smoked meat.

Medium-bodied and even across the palate, with fine-grained tannin that firms up towards the back and keeps the fruit tidy. Acidity runs clean through the middle, the texture is supple without being soft, and the finish is dry and savoury with cherry skin lingering.

Roast duck is the obvious call, and it works: the wine's acidity cuts the fat while the tannin handles the crisp skin. Also good with mushroom risotto, lamb backstrap with rosemary, seared salmon, or a plate of charcuterie and washed-rind cheese. Serve it a touch cool, around 15 degrees.

Drinking well now and worth decanting for half an hour. Expect it to hold and develop over the next six to eight years, with the tannin softening and the savoury, forest-floor characters coming forward as the primary fruit recedes.