USA LOW

94 points Wine Advocate
The 2022 The Major General Pinot Noir is a blend of fruit from different vineyards, built to be a voice for the vintage, but not necessarily any one single vineyard. On the nose, there's red orchard fruit (Pink Lady Apples, satsuma plum, et al.), sweet tobacco, lavender and a hint of tapenade. In the mouth, the wine is poised and composed, with a restrained flow of flavor and phenolics across the palate. It's chalky and fine and a pleasure to drink. A beauty. 13% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

The handling of the Pinot Noirs at Two Paddocks is largely contiguous across the range. With specific regard to the Proprietor's Reserve Range (The Last Chance, Fusilier, First and now, in 2023, the Major General), the regimen is loosely as follows: the fruit is handpicked, low-cropped (about four tonnes to hectare) and each of the cuvées sees around 80% to 90% whole bunches, with wild ferments across all. This includes a five-day cold soak, 10-day fermentation and a five-day post-ferment maceration. They are all matured in French barrique, approximately 20% new, for around 12 months.