Giant Steps "Sexton Vineyard" Pinot Noir 2021 ~ Yarra Valley, Australia

95/100 Jane Faulkner
94/100 Wine Enthusiast
95/100 Wine Spectator
94/100 Steven Creber (2019 vintage)
94/100 Mike Bennie (2019 vintage)
94/100 The Wine Front (2019 vintage)
93/100 Wine Enthusiast (2019 vintage)
92/100 Huon Hooke (2019 vintage)
92/100 CellarTracker (2019 vintage)
94/100 James Halliday (2018 vintage)
96/100 James Halliday (2017 vintage)
95/100 The Real Review (2017 vintage)
94/100 Wine Advocate (2017 vintage)
93/100 Mike Bennie (2017 vintage)
93/100 The Wine Front (2017 vintage)

James Halliday 5 Star Rated Winery

“Halliday Wine Companion - Australian Winery of the Year 2023 - Shortlisted. Ranked Top 8”.

Jane Faulkner "This is superbly composed and for a young pinot, it’s drinking beautifully now. Heady with florals, dark cherries and lots of earthy characters. Fuller bodied, with supple and shapely tannins, while the juicy acidity keeps this rather buoyant. Of course, if you can wait, this will also reward with extra cellar time."

Wine Enthusiast "This wine pops with fleshy red fruit, white pepper and woodsy, sap characters. The palate is round and primary-fruit driven, but it hints at depth and complexity yet to come. The juicy berries are woven through with chalky, savory tannins and spicy and sap linger on the finish. Drink now–2030"

Halliday Wine Companion Awards 2023, Philip Rich "A dark, deep crimson. A more robust Yarra Valley pinot with its aromas of dark cherries, black plum and a dried-earth character that makes it quite different to the other Giant Step single-vineyard pinots. Sweetly fruited, concentrated and structured on the palate, what this impressive wine doesn't have in finesse, it makes up for in power and grunt. This should still be looking good, 10, if not 15, years from now." (2021 vintage)

Steven Creber "Balance is the outstanding quality of this wine. You don't really need to pick it apart, just enjoy the flow of ripe cherry and other typically varietal pinot characters that run through the bouquet and palate. The tannin, although quite light, melds in seamlessly and there's a feeling of freshness on the finish." (2019 vintage)

Mike Bennie "Sexy Sexton Supple, soft and come-hither pinot noir. Cherry, red berries, nougat, subtle spice and a good lick of juicy acidity. It feels broad but well-honed, lots of flavour, lots of space in the palate, finishes spicy and fresh. A very seductive pinot with lots of detail in tow." (2019 vintage)

Huon Hooke "Savoury, fusty bouquet of earth and dried flower heads. The palate is intense and focused, refined and quite complex, especially considering its youth and station. Lovely mouth-feel and balance. Soft, fine tannins. A touch of aniseed and berry jam to close. Drinking superbly already." (2019 vintage)

Wine Enthusiast "From north-facing slopes and at lower elevation than sister wine, “Applejack,” this single-vineyard Pinot is initially dense and quiet, taking time to reveal its charms. As it warms, it unravels notes of cherries, plums, spring flowers and spice, with earthier bass notes of smudged charcoal and something more sanguine. The winemaking prowess shows on the palate. It has weight and power but also elegance in the form of well-integrated, sandpaper-like tannins and savory spice amid the concentrated fruit."

James Halliday "A powerful, expressive, dark berry and plum bouquet, the palate doubling up on the fruit and adding high-quality pinot tannins. A quality wine.....” (2017 vintage)

Huon Hook "A top wine from a top vintage.....This delicious single-vineyard pinot is fruit-sweet and bright, loaded with red and dark cherry aromas of good intensity backed up by abundant fine, soft tannins. The balance is impeccable and the finish is persistent. " (2017 vintage)

Mike Bennie "Ripe cherry, red berry, faint meatiness, rosehip tea. Sets itself off on a darker, fuller path for pinot. Plush in the palate, dark chocolate and amaro, red berries, fine bitterness to finish with a smudge more bitter-dark chocolate. Mouthwatering, hunger-setting stuff. Fuller figured here. Breathy even. Nice though. Real nice. The ‘generous one’." (2017 vintage)

Different Drop Wine Team "A great release of Phil Sexton's home block Pinot Noir. Steve Flamsteed has delivered another beauty here from the sensational 2017 vintage." (2017 vintage)

Giant Steps is a privately owned, estate based, Yarra Valley grower and winemaker. Giant Steps has forged a reputation for delivering some of Australia’s most consistent, over-performing, varietal wines. These wines have received global acclaim and established a strong reputation in restaurants and fine wine stores around the world.

Since 2003 Giant Steps wines have collectively been awarded 19 trophies and over 50 gold medals at major international and domestic wine shows and has been named one of the Top 100 Wineries in the World by Wine & Spirits Magazine, US for each of the last three years. Owner Phil Sexton came to wine via beer. He started Little Creatures, a favourite of Aussie hopheads, in Perth (Western Australia). Winemaker Steve Flamsteed works exclusively on Giant Steps single vineyard wines. Yarra Valley is a region with a cool climate, best known for its Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Yarra Valley is an hour’s drive east of Melbourne. Located on the steep north-facing slopes of the Warramate Ranges, alongside the vineyards of Yarra Yering and Coldstream Hills, the Sexton vineyard is exposed and demanding. Being on the higher slopes, topsoil is thin and root systems have established themselves in shallow gravelly loams above a tough rocky clay base. Bunch yields set naturally low in this environment, facilitating a low intervention approach to what is otherwise hand-tended viticulture. Biodynamic vineyard management principles are being introduced with the purpose of further distinguishing the site and improving grape and wine quality.

Pinot Noir is the dominant red wine grape of Burgundy, now produced in wine regions all over the world, including western Germany, northern Italy, Chile, South Africa, Australia and, perhaps most notably, California, Oregon and New Zealand.

The essence of Pinot Noir wine is its aroma of strawberry and cherry (fresh red cherries in lighter wines and stewed black cherries in weightier examples), underpinned in the most complex examples by hints of the forest floor. Well-built Pinot Noirs, particularly from warmer harvests, also exhibits notes of leather and violets, sometimes approaching the flavour spectrum of Syrah.