Hoddles Creek Estate has been farming the steep, hand-pruned slopes of the Upper Yarra Valley since 1997. The 2025 Pinot Noir returns to the estate’s signature form — composed, serious, and deeply drinkable, with the fineness of tannin and precision of fruit that defines great cool-climate Yarra Valley Pinot Noir.
Appearance
Deep, clear ruby with a fine, bright rim — the youthful colour of a 2025 Upper Yarra Pinot Noir of genuine concentration and cool-climate precision.
Nose
Red berries and dark cherry dominate the nose, with five spice, flashes of mint and fennel adding lift and complexity.
Palate
Firm mid-palate tannins lead to pleasing acidity on the back — composed and drinkable, with orange and blood orange acidity and a chalky tannin structure that lends the wine genuine seriousness. The finish is dry and long. Drink 2027–2034.
Winemaking
All fruit is hand-picked in the morning and immediately de-stemmed with no crushing. Some batches were cold soaked for approximately 4–5 days; others started fermentation immediately. Natural and cultured yeasts were used on different ferments. Pigeage and delastage were used for cap management. On completion of fermentation the wine was gently pressed and transferred to 30% new, 30% one year old and the balance in two and three year old oak. After 11 months of barrel maturation, the wine was assembled and bottled without filtration or fining.
Vineyard
The vineyard sits astride Gembrook Road and adjacent Hoddles Creek in the Upper Yarra Valley. Its steeply sloping blocks prohibit mechanical harvesting — both vineyards are hand pruned and hand harvested.
Cellaring
5–8 years.
Serving Temperature
16–18°C.
Reviews
“This wine is in its usual good form, offering red and black cherry flavours, five spice notes, flashes of mint and even fennel. It has both composure and drinkability writ large, though the fineness of the tannin and the dryness of the finish lend it, too, a seriousness. There’s an orange and perhaps even a blood orange note to the acidity, and a chalkiness too to the tannin. It’s pretty much impeccable all over.”
93 Points — Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, May 2026. Drink: 2027–2034
