Giant Steps Yarra Valley Pinot Noir 2017

Giant Steps is recognized as a global benchmark for cool climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The winery was established in 1998, one year after founder Phil Sexton arrived in the Yarra Valley in search of ideal sites to produce Chardonnay and Pinot Noir of purity and finesse.

"The intensity of the aromas and flavours unfolding with the first sip stop you in your tracks. The whole bunch component is evident, but not dominant, simply one of many factors in shaping the flavour and texture of this lovely wine."  James Halliday

The Yarra Valley range is made from handpicked fruit from all of Giant Step's estate vineyards - Sexton, Applejack, Primavera, Swallowfield, Wombat Creek and Tarraford Vineyards. The wines are produced using indigenous yeasts, gravity-flow winemaking, and minimal fining and filtration. This approach produces highly expressive wines, true to the regional characteristics of the Yarra Valley. 

The 2017 Giant Steps Yarra Valley Pinot Noir was hand picked, wild yeast open-fermented with 20% whole bunches and matured in French oak (10% new, 90% older) for 7 months.

Expert reviews

"Wild yeast open-fermented with 20% whole bunches, matured for 7 months in French oak (10% new), gravity bottled. Very good colour; the intensity of the aromas and flavours unfolding with the first sip stop you in your tracks. The whole bunch component is evident, but not dominant, simply one of many factors in shaping the flavour and texture of this lovely wine. Drink by 2037."  James Halliday, Halliday Wine Companion - 97 points and Special Value Wine  ★  

"Medium to full red/purple hue with a charming strawberry, raspberry aroma, fruit-driven and straightforward but very aromatic. Nice wine: deliciously pinoty and fruity, oak taking a back-seat, and tannins well moderated. Sweet red fruits fill the palate. A young but very stylish pinot. Extreme value. Drink 2018-2028."  Huon Hooke, The Real Review - 93 points

Awards

Special Value Wine – Halliday Wine Companion  ★ 

About the winery

 In 1997 Phil Sexton arrived in the Yarra Valley in search of ideal sites to produce Chardonnay and Pinot Noir of purity and finesse. He was looking for sites with altitude, aged soils, slopes of exposure, regular rainfall and cool to cold nighttime temperatures and a gentle breeze off the protecting mountain ranges. The Giant Steps winery was established one year later in 1998.

The focus is on the production of high-quality, single-vineyard wines. The Giant Steps Single Vineyard range is produced from the most site-expressive fruit off the best vineyards in great years. Each single vineyard wine tells a story about the vineyard, vintage and variety. Production of these wines is very limited with some vineyards producing as little as 200 cases.

The single vineyards comprise the Sexton Vineyard in the Lower Yarra and the Applejack Vineyard in the Upper Yarra (both owned by Giant Steps), the Tarraford Vineyard in the Lower Yarra under long-term lease, the Primavera Vineyard in the Upper Yarra under long-term supervised contract and the Wombat Creek Vineyard owned by Hand Picked Wines. In addition, Giant Steps produce a Yarra Valley range of wines made from handpicked fruit from their estate vineyards. They are highly expressive wines, true to the regional characteristics of the Yarra Valley. 

The Giant Steps wines have received global acclaim and are now recognized as a global benchmark for cool climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Since 2003 Giant Steps wines have been awarded 34 trophies and over 100 gold medals at major international and domestic wine shows and has been named one of the Top 100 Wineries in the World by US Wine & Spirits Magazine for each of the last six years.

Giant Step's success is due in no small part to Steve Flamsteed, Chief Winemaker since 2003. Steve had previously worked for Leeuwin Estate (1999 – 2002) and the Hardy Wine Company at their Yarra Burn Winery in the Yarra Valley (2002 – 2003). Steve was named Gourmet Traveller Wine 'Winemaker of the Year' in 2016. "Steve Flamsteed is a man of many talents with a finely tuned palate, an instinctive flair for winemaking and fastidious attention to detail. This shows particularly in the stunning single-vineyard chardonnays and pinots of Giant Steps: distinctive wines that reflect their sites and glow with impeccable finesse."  Peter Forrestal, chairman of judges, Gourmet Traveller Wine Winemaker of the Year

Melanie Chester joined Giant Steps as Head of Winemaking and Viticulture in 2021. She came to Giant Steps from Sutton Grange Winery in Central Victoria, where she was Head Winemaker. In 2014, Melanie became the youngest ever scholar selected for The Len Evans Tutorial. In 2015, she was named Young Winemaker of the Year by Gourmet Traveller Wine magazine, and in 2018, Melanie was recognized by Young Gun of Wine as the People's Choice award winner for favourite winemaker.

Giant Steps was acquired by the Jackson Family in 2020. The Jackson Family own a vast stable of wineries in California (Napa Valley, Sonoma County, Mendocino County, Monterey County, Santa Barbara and Oregon), Australia (Yarra Valley and McLaren Vale), Chile, France, Italy and South Africa.