I looked twice, and then a third time, almost quizzically at the bottle when tasting this wine.  It is really rather good.  It’s one of those wines that reminds that pinot noir from the right place, at the right time, and in the right hands is something rather special.  But first some delicious detail.

Ten Minutes by Tractor is a serious producer in all respects.  Their 10X Pinot Noir from the 2013 vintage is a blend of grapes from three vineyards on the Mornington Peninsula – the Coolart Road vineyard (76%) located in behind Hastings on the north of the Mornington Peninsula, the Judd vineyard (14%) in Main Ridge and the McCutcheon vineyard (10%) also in Main Ridge.  The 10X Pinot Noir is mostly fashioned from the MV6 and 115 pinot noir clones (62% and 21%, respectively), although a smattering of others – the 777 (9%), 114 (4%), G5V15 (2%) and Pommard (2%) – attest an eye for precision.  Hand harvested, and fully destemmed, the grapes see a wild yeast ferment and elevage for 11 months in French oak, only 15% of it new.

A map of the Coolart Road vineyard, entirely planted to pinot noir.

The result in the glass is a Goldilocks wine where everything seems just right.  Its aromatics are alluring, and immediately so, with reminders of dark cherry, spice and tea-trees.  The palate is balanced, with a delicate mouthfeel that conceals its generous fruit weight of dark cherries and well judged cedar characters.  This wine is both charming and deceptively powerful, and the finish is long and expansive.  This is an excellent pinot noir release.

Rating: Very Good, Abv: 13.8%, Price: $32, Source: sample, Vendors: http://www.wine-searcher.com/, Website: http://tenminutesbytractor.com.au, Tasted: 2015