Felton Road wines... This winery's production represents the pinnacle of Pinot Noir in Aotearoa, New Zealand, along with a handful of other wineries, but there's more to Felton Road winery, which also makes Riesling and Chardonnay. All Felton Road wines are estate grown, which means that all grapes were grown on land owned by the winery. The attention to detail, long term devotion of both the viticultural team as well as the winemaking one and the unwavering focus on certified organics all add up to a consistently impressive bunch of wines.
Here are my reviews of the winery's latest newest. It was a pleasure and a privilege, as always, to taste and review these wines. I have great respect for the owners, viticulturists and the winemaking team at Felton Road. These wines are collectibles and also made for pleasure - in other words, enjoyment is at the forefront as well as an aim for top quality.
18.5/20
2024 Felton Road Dry Riesling RRP $47.50
Central Otago Riesling is one of the great whites in New Zealand today and the fact that it's made in tiny volumes makes it even better because a lot of time and resources go into producing high quality expressions of Riesling. This dry Felton Road Riesling and sings with aromas of lime zest, fresh crisp apples, ripe nectarines and apricot aromas, which all bode well for a wine that will age for 10+ years.
18.5/20
2023 Felton Road Bannockburn Chardonnay RRP $62.50
Chardonnay is eclipsed by Pinot Noir's stellar success in Central Otago but it remains a great wine in the wings, especially when it's as good as this. Creamy textured, layered with flavours of ripe stone fruit and citrus, underpinned by firm acidity bringing structure and depth to this wine. It drinks well now and can age for seven to eight years, potentially longer.
18.5/20
2023 Felton Road Block 2 Chardonnay RRP $81.50
This creamy, complex and highly structured Chardonnay has a full body and enticing aromas of lemon and white florals, supported by aromas of roasted macadamias and a savoury touch of oatmeal. Firm and structured with vibrant depth and length. Best decanted and will evolve with age for at least seven to eight years.
17.5/20
2023 Felton Road Pinot Noir Bannockburn RRP $84
Bannockburn is home to arguably more of Central Otago's great Pinot Noirs than any other area in the region, including this full bodied, elegant and structured wine with its fruit forward flavours and notes of savoury earth aromas. This wine drinks well now with deep red cherry aromas, hints of fleshy plums and a touch of spice on its lingering finish.
The following two wines were previously published as Wines of the Week in February 2025
19/20
2023 Felton Road Calvert Pinot Noir RRP $102
This is one of the great vineyard sites in Central Otago and is planted entirely in Pinot Noir, all of which is hand picked with approximately 23% whole bunch fermented and 100% outstanding wine as a result of these and other incremental quality steps in production. Lifted aromatics of plush dark cherry and ripe, concentrated plums sit within a framework of firm but balanced acidity. This adds great structure to this wine, providing it with excellent depth of flavour and length now but also giving it the potential for a long life, if cellared in good conditions. Oak maturation on this wine was 13 months in French oak barriques, typically 20% of which were new.
This is one of the great Pinot Noirs of Aotearoa, New Zealand, every year. It drinks well now and will definitely age, evolving into an even more rewarding wine over the next 10+ years.
19/20
2023 Pinot Noir Block 5 RRP $138.50
This is one of the most sought after Pinot Noirs produced in Central Otago and in New Zealand each year, typically displaying muscularity and power in its youth, which evolve over time into a silky textured wine with deep flavours of dark macerated cherries and a hint of savouriness. Winemaker Blair Walter makes Block 5 Pinot Noir exactly the same way as Calvert Pinot Noir (featured above in this column), with the only difference being a longer time on French oak barriques of typically 16 to 17 months for this wine.
This new 2023 Felton Road Block 5 Pinot Noir is youthful right now with bright freshness and layers of complexity evident. It drinks well, begging to be decanted and preferably also cellared for at least five years. It has the structure and depth to age well for 10+ years in good cellar conditions.
I am visiting Felton Road Wines during vintage 2025 and looking forward to an insight into all aspects of the wines while there.
