The 2025 vintage at Rockburn marks a major milestone for Central Otago winemaker Malcolm Rees-Francis, celebrating his 20th vintage at Rockburn Wines.
To celebrate this achievement, Rockburn hosted a special 20th vintage retrospective tasting at Park Hyatt Auckland on 29 July, gathering media, trade and Pinot Noir enthusiasts to mark the occasion. The tasting spanned 16 wines over four flights, each telling a story of site, vintage, and Malcolm’s winemaking evolution.
“It’s rare that we host a full retrospective tasting like this—it’s been many years since our last,” said winemaker Malcolm Rees-Francis. “To pour 16 vintages side-by-side, all under screw cap and all drinking exceptionally well, was a proud and humbling moment.”
Tim Severne, Rockburn General Manager, praised the longevity and character of the wines: “Rockburn Pinot Noirs are built to age. The first wine we tasted was the 2006 Rockburn Pinot Noir—it was fresh, still held beautiful acidity, and will age for many, many years to come. A true testament to great Central Otago Pinot Noir.”
Over two decades, Rockburn has built an international reputation for producing elegant, expressive, and terroir-driven Pinot Noir. The consistency of awards and accolades speaks volumes to Malcolm’s deep understanding of vineyard, climate, and his craft. i tend to think of the ‘Estate’ Pinot as one of those wines that you would give to someone – a visitor from overseas for example – who had never had a Central Otago Pinot Noir. You would explain it as ‘quintessential Central Pinot”.
That tasting starts with four vintages of this very wine – see below for my thoughts.
Rockburn Estate Pinot Noir 2006 A pale purple colour in the glass – translucent with a coppery edge. Pure and intense, with sweet ‘jubey’ fruit and fine tannin. Crystalline acidity still pulsing through the palate. A touch of spice and dark chocolate toward the finish.
Rockburn Estate Pinot Noir 2010 is much darker in colour – an inky purple colour. A smoky nose that has as much savoury as sweet going on. Super acidity – quite bright and energetic. Bold use of oak and brooding tannin. A whole lot going on. A firm, muscular finish.
Rockburn Estate Pinot Noir 2015 A mid-ruby colour in the glass. Vibrant fruit, with cherry compote, orange rind and ‘bitters’. Smooth and ripe with a palate that develops into a silky texture. Supple, gentle tannin providing an excellent foil to that lush fruit and a rich, long finish.
Rockburn Estate Pinot Noir 2023 A pretty nose showing dark cherry, damson, mint, thyme and lilac florals. Well-balanced with a delightful savoury element too – tapenade, espresso bean and mushroom. Tannin is supple, the whole thing fine and tight.
The ‘Barrels’ range of wines come from a desire to keep the separate parcels of fruit apart to demonstrate in the glass the particular definitions of each vineyard. Over time, Malcolm will examine all the barrels, tasting away, and making marks on each as he goes. As such, the ‘number of barrels’ varies from vintage to vintage.
Rockburn Eight Barrels 2006 Some age showing in the colour – a ruddy burgundy in the glass. Good secondary notes in the bouquet as well, with a funky, meaty barnyard-ness alongside the cherry, damson, redcurrant, orange peel and rose petal florals. There is also something not unlike ripe peach on the nose as well – complex and intriguing. A solid spine of tannin and acidity persists in this near 20-year old. My favourite on the day.
Rockburn Twelve Barrels 2009 is darker and denser, with, cherry, cassis and blueberry fruits. A bit of kirsch where the fruit is still very juicy. Fine but deep, with silky, lightly grippy tannins and a woody spiciness.
Rockburn Eleven Barrels 2019 Damson, thyme, morello cherry, redcurrant and rosehip syrup in the bouquet. Medium-bodied – a saturation of bloody, ripe flavours with some savoury, dried herbs, black tea and roasted carrot flavours. Zesty acidity and a stony minerality adds complexity.
Rockburn Eleven Barrels 2023 is super upfront – primary and bristling with energy. Concentrated and with keen acidity, it is bold and lively. Cherry, cassis and cranberry. Calmer as you go through, with supple tannin, well-judged oak, and a fresh, lingering finish.
Rockburn Seven Barrels 2016 is the expression from Gibbston, using Malcolm’s favourite barrels. A deliciously balanced wine with a deep generosity through the palate. Secondary characters are starting to show already, with mushroom, oolong tea and old leather.
Rockburn Six Barrels 2017 shows Gibbston’s regional floral character in the perfume. A supple, textured palate with a touch of green nettle/herbal amongst the cherry, plum and barrel char notes. Fresh but very fine and quite plush at the finish. Needs a bit more time to marry together.
Rockburn Eight Barrels 2019 has that lifted floral tone to the bouquet again. Bramble, cherry and plum framed with toasty oak. The core is the interplay of measured acidity and fine tannin. Settled, seamless – compared to the nervy 2017, with a dry, spiced finish.
Rockburn Seven Barrels 2023 looks a very bright ruby colour – something you certainly observe alongside the older vintages. Cinnamon, clove, pepper and charry oak notes rise from the glass. ‘Raspberry’ is not something that Malcolm looks for – but it does show in this coltish wine, alongside some richer cherry. Well-made, with a solid spine, but hard to judge the merit at this point.
Malcolm used to say that there was a market for ‘big Pinot’ and he was happy to make one to suit that audience. It is a little in the direction of Syrah, with a few tricks of the trade to build it the way it is. When I travelled to the UK last year and could only take a handful of bottles to share with friends and family – I took a bottle of ‘The Art’ as I thought it would do the job. It didn’t disappoint. The fruit comes from Bannockburn – offering up another picture of Central Otago.
Rockburn The Art Pinot Noir 2010 is certainly ‘big’ but this is also quite serious and studied. The spine of oak, acidity and tannin seems well-integrated, and I get a fine tension through the palate. Baking spices, chalky minerality, and a seasoning of pepper. Quite hedonistic and with a dry, zesty finish.
Rockburn The Art Pinot Noir 2016 is the very vintage I took overseas! An expressive nose filled with doris plum, blackberry, campari and thyme, alongside distinctive cinnamon and green peppercorn notes. Full bodied and concentrated, lush fruit is girdled in tight, dense tannins with a full extraction grip. Round and polished with a seam of well integrated, but palpable oak; around the dense juicy core.
Rockburn The Art Pinot Noir 2019 – another powerful glassful! There is more fruit here, but the body is quite robust, with sinewy, resinous tannin. I could mistake this for a big Syrah, from somewhere with more warmth than Central – although the fruit does tend more damson and cherry the deeper you dive.
Rockburn The Art Pinot Noir 2022 A dense ruby-purple colour in the glass. Varietally pure aromatics, with black cherry, bramble and a lift of violet florals on the nose. The core forms around a mixture of fine, silken tannin and a peppery spice that speaks of some whole-bunch complexity in the winemaking. The toasty oak adds richness before baking spice, sumac and a little dark liquorice linger in the finish – long and sweetening.
