Marnong Estate Weatherstone Pinot Noir 2025

The perfume is irresistible from the outset. Bright red cherry, raspberry coulis and rose petals almost demand that you pause over the glass before taking the first sip. There is generosity here, eager to make a good first impression, though the fruit doesn’t quite travel as far across the palate as that opening promises. The first taste brings a lush rush of Morello cherry, redcurrant, cranberry skin and dried raspberry. The wine then settles into a more transparent register, the fruit sitting high rather than broad before giving way to hints of clove, nutmeg, star anise with some savoury spice. It finishes on spice rather than sweetness, supported by a finely woven frame that becomes more rewarding with each return to the glass. Weatherstone comes from one of Marnong’s leanest vineyard blocks, planted between 2017 and 2019 on shallow, degraded granite soils, where the vines naturally produce lower yields. Alex describes the resulting wines as pale, juicy, floral and more ethereal than those grown on the estate’s heavier soils. The block is planted entirely to Abel clone, although here it is the relationship between young vines, lean soils and the 2025 season that shapes the wine more convincingly than clone alone. Alex keeps the winemaking deliberately consistent across the three Pinot Noirs so that differences between the vineyards remain visible. The fruit is hand-picked and carefully sorted before around 25–30% whole bunch is layered through the ferment. Rather than working the cap through forceful extraction, the skins are allowed to steep while juice is circulated by gravity to keep the ferment moist. The wine then spent around thirteen months in French oak, approximately 30% new, a slightly longer élevage, which suited the generosity of the 2025 vintage. That same restraint extends into the vineyard. Marnong continues its transition away from conventional farming through reduced spraying, mixed-species cover crops, grazing sheep, targeted compost applications and irrigation guided by soil probes rather than a calendar. The aim is not intervention for its own sake, but healthier soils capable of expressing each block with greater clarity. There is an unmistakable youthfulness here. The fruit remains primary, joyful and full of energy. Some drinkers will be won over immediately by that exuberance; others may long for greater depth through the middle of the palate. More savoury detail emerges with air, although this remains a ripe, fragrant expression of Pinot Noir.

Liinaa Berry

Liinaa Berry is a Melbourne-based wine critic and consultant with over a decade of experience as a sommelier and wine buyer across Australia and around the world where she has built award-winning wine programs and championed independent producers with conviction. Now focused on reviewing and writing, Liinaa brings a floor-trained palate and commercial insight to her assessments. She is also the Melbourne Ambassador for Star Wine List and serves on the committee of Sommeliers Australia. An advocate for site-driven wines and thoughtful farming, Liinaa is particularly drawn to producers who articulate a clear sense of place. Her tasting philosophy centres on structure, balance and context — always asking not just how a wine tastes, but why it matters.