2021 Giant Steps Pinot Noir ‘Sexton Vineyard’ - Yarra Valley

"Complex from the very first moment. Aromas of blueberries, red and dark cherries, sappy and herbal notes, as well as hard brown spices, blackcurrants and violets. The palate has such succulent and energetic style, with red and dark cherries and blueberries sitting in a very complete and layered, fine brand of tannin. The depth and plushness are both impressive. Drink over the next eight years. Screw cap."

96 Points - Nick Stock - James Suckling

"Vineyard is at the wonderfully-named Gruyere, planted in 1997. North-facing, exposed site.

Cherry pie, sweet and delicious, with earthier/meatier aspects. It’s like drinking sweet roasted lamb, studded with berries and herbs. Blue fruit aspects here, woodsy herbs, sweet acidity through the finish. It’s not simple but it feels like a simple pleasure, if that makes sense; it just has that drink-me-now exuberance. That said the tannin here is beautifully crafted. I’d drink this before the others in the Single Vineyard range though it may well hold for as long as any of them. Up-front pinot deliciousness, with substance, is the message here."

93 Points - Campbell Mattinson - The Wine Front

2021 Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Pinot Noir
Robert Parker Wine Advocate – 93+pts

"Sexton Vineyard is planted on shallow gray dirt over mudstone. The elevation is 220 meters and shows the magic of a warmer part of the Yarra in a relatively cool year. Plum skin, chinotto, fig, blueberries and exotic spices form the backdrop to the bright strawberry/cherry fruit. The 2021 Sexton Vineyard Pinot Noir is structurally quite different from the other vineyards, in that the tannins are more grainy and gravelly and provide more framework from which the fruit can hang. It is perhaps more obvious in its display of fruit and tannin, but with that comes a sonorous baritone of tannin and flavor. Impressive."

"So, to the wines. This was a very impressive release. The cooler year played slightly more into the hands of the Chardonnays than the Pinot Noirs, in my opinion, however the purity, delicacy and finesse of these wines as a group was never in doubt. The whites have achieved kaleidoscopic complexity and spice, all of it underpinned by gloriously tight acidity and very fine phenolic texture. The reds are spicy, fine-boned and driven by structure and form rather than overflowing fruit, yet the fruit is abundant (and restrained) in each of the cuvées. My favorite wines were the Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay, for its mouthwatering intensity and caper-brine quality, and a very tough split between the Applejack and Primavera Vineyard Pinot Noirs. This is a brilliant collection overall, which most importantly shows the distinct vineyard DNA of each site in harmony with the Giant Steps house style." - Erin Larkin