Wine Tasting Notes
Labyrinth Wines.
Ariki (Riki) Hill is a New Zealand native of Māori heritage who made a significant career change in the middle of his life to start Labyrinth, a Pinot Noir - only label. Christchurch, New Zealand is ideal Pinot Noir country with its cool climate and Riki was exposed to local Pinot Noirs in his youth. He spent 2 decades working in the food industry overseeing liquid food processing including milk processing in the Middle East. He earned a Bachelor of Applied Science in Oenology from Australia’s Charles Sturt University.
His first foray into winemaking came in the early 1980s with a 1982 New Zealand Pinot Noir. He came to California to pursue his passion and worked with Lane Tanner, now his wife. He released his first California Pinot Noir under the newly-launched Labyrinth label in 2000. A 2002 Australian bottling made his label truly global. The name of the label reflects his philosophy that climate, location and luck all come together in the search for quality Pinot Noir.
Making wine on two continents keeps Riki busy but is not impossible, he points out, since the northern and southern hemispheres are in opposite seasons at all times. He makes small lots of Pinot Noir sourced from the Central Coast and Australia’s Yarra Valley. Bien Nacido Vineyard is a core staple of his Central Coast program with White Hills Vineyard added with the 2004 vintage.
Influenced by Burgundian styling of winemakers such as Jim Clendenen and wife Lane Tanner, Riki makes his Pinot Noirs express supple, bouncy fruit flavors, bright acids that bode well for longevity and softer tannins. Aged mainly in neutral barrels, labyrinth wines always have some bottle maturity on release. These wines are well balanced, age-worthy and very food-friendly.
2004 Labyrinth Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley 89 Points
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