This store is currently for viewing purposes only. You can visit our physical store to purchase items. If you have any questions, please contact us for more details.
Neudorf Tom's Block Moutere Pinot Noir 2020
Neudorf is one of the foundational estates of New Zealand’s South Island, established by Tim and Judy Finn in the late 1970s in the Moutere Hills near Nelson. Long before the region gained international attention, the Finn family was farming organically and focusing on low yield vineyards planted on the distinctive clay gravel soils of Upper Moutere. Today the winery is led by their son Todd Finn and remains one of the country’s benchmarks for pinot noir and chardonnay, with a style that consistently favors perfume, texture, and restraint over sheer power.
Tom’s Block is one of Neudorf’s most celebrated vineyard sites, planted on the heavier clay rich Moutere soils that tend to produce darker, more structured expressions of pinot noir compared to the brighter gravels found elsewhere in Nelson. The vineyard is named after Tom Cummings, a longtime friend of the estate, and has become known for wines that combine savory depth with lifted aromatics. The 2020 vintage benefited from warm, dry growing conditions that produced concentrated fruit while still preserving the freshness that defines the region.
Winemaking is intentionally measured and site focused. The fruit is hand harvested and largely destemmed, though a portion of whole clusters is often included depending on the vintage. Fermentation occurs with indigenous yeast in open top fermenters, followed by aging in French oak barrels with only a modest percentage of new wood. The aim is not to mark the wine with oak but to allow the texture and earthy complexity of the vineyard to unfold gradually over time.
The 2020 opens with dark cherry, wild plum, dried rose, and black tea layered over forest floor, warm spice, and a subtle iron like minerality that is very characteristic of Moutere soils. There is a quiet concentration to the wine, but it remains graceful and finely structured rather than heavy. The tannins are silky but persistent, carrying the wine through a long savory finish with hints of mushroom, thyme, and smoky earth.
