Decidedly the famed red grape of Burgundy, the best examples of Pinot Noir can inspire goosebumps for its sheer drinking pleasure.
Light bodied with fresh acidity, Pinot Noir wines can overdeliver on flavour with floral, fruity, savoury, earthy, complex and lingering flavours.
From country to region, sub-region to single vineyard, Pinot Noir is capable of expressing the place it comes from, and while Burgundy is its home, with intricacies of its own, Pinot Noir has adapted and excelled in wine regions across the globe.
Results from the recently announced Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) highlight the versatility of this variety, with nine countries and 30 outstanding Pinot Noir wines represented in the competition’s top medal categories – Gold, Platinum and Best in Show.
Scroll down to see 20 top-scoring Pinot Noir wines from DWWA 2024
In the competition’s top 50 selection, three Best in Show accolades were awarded to single varietal Pinot Noir wines from Tasmania, Australia and Central Otago, New Zealand.
Burgundy received four Platinum medals for its 2022 vintage wines, a standout year for reds. As highlighted by Regional Chair for Burgundy, Charles Curtis MW, in Decanter’s Burgundy 2022 en primeur full report, the vintage showcased exceptional quality. Producer Albert Bichot claimed two of these for its Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru and Morey Saint-Denis 1er Cru. Judges praised the wines for ‘oozing inviting red cherry and earthy forest fruit, bewitching and beguiling as they intermingle with a velvety structure.’
Additional 97-point accolades were awarded to Pinot Noir wines from Yarra Valley, Australia, Baden, Germany, Valais, Switzerland and Oregon in the US.
In the Gold category, the USA saw success with four varietal wines awarded medals, while Pinot Noirs from Italy’s Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, Canada’s Vancouver Island and Chile’s Casablanca Valley also secured coveted spots on the prestigious Gold list.
As a truly global competition, Decanter World Wine Awards results showcase the exceptional quality of Pinot Noir from around the world. What better occasion than International Pinot Noir Day to spotlight some of the competition’s finest?
Below discover a selection of top-scoring wines from the 2024 competition, with many more awarded Pinot Noir wines to discover on our results site awards.decanter.com
Pinot Noir: 20 top-scoring wines to try from DWWA 2024
Australia
Bay of Fires, Pinot Noir, Tasmania 2022
Best in Show, 97 points
Prior to 2024, we’ve never had a Tasmanian Pinot in our Best In Show selection. This year we have two. Was it because 2022 was a sensational vintage? Not exactly – the east coast of the island suffered from a spectacularly cool, wet season; elsewhere on the island, though, conditions did indeed vary from good to outstanding. The first wine in our pair is a pan-Tasmanian blend with source fruit from several regions. It is a translucent dark red in colour, with warm, settled aromas of plum, cherry and raspberry just teased towards sweetness with subtle oak. It is warm, soft and mouth-filling, built on the same core of subtly mingled fruits with muted, natural acidity and fine tannins, the combination giving an almost silky charm to the wine. This considered, restrained winemaking lays the groundwork for a Pinot which is hugely easy to drink yet at the same time deeply satisfying and highly amenable – a Pinot to sip on its own, to chill with fish or to serve at a cool room temperature for white meats and salads. Alcohol 13.6%
Lowestoft, Single Vineyard Jacoben Pinot Noir, Derwent Valley, Tasmania 2022
Best in Show, 97 points
The second of this year’s outstanding 2022 Tasmanian Pinot Noirs comes from the Derwent Valley, just to the north of Hobart and in the rain shadow of Mount Wellington. The region can be drought-susceptible in warm summers, but in the wetter season of 2022 its site stood it in good stead. This is a darker wine that its pan-Tasmanian peer,…
Source : https://www.decanter.com.master.public.keystone-prod-eks-euw1.futureplc.engineering/decanter-world-wine-awards/15-top-scoring-pinot-noir-wines-to-try-474158/
