By Farr Farrside Pinot Noir 2017
This Pinot Noir was too dry for a Pinot. It showed smoky red fruit in a natural style.
Region: Victoria · Type: Red · Vintage: 2017 · Producer: By Farr · Grape: Pinot Noir
Tasted 2026-07-04
In the glass
The fruit was red and smoky, and the style was natural. The acidity was high, with matchstick and tobacco. There was a slight brick tint to the colour, and on the nose too there was a milky note with an oily texture. For a Pinot, it was too dry.
Producer
The family winery Wine by Farr was founded in 1994 by Gary Farr and is now run by Nick Farr and Cassie Farr. Its founder made wine at Bannockburn from 1978, starting as the first winemaker at Bannockburn Vineyards, just over the fence from where the Farr vineyards now are. He learned his winemaking working at Domaine Dujac in Bourgogne, Cristom in Oregon and Calera in California.
Site
The Farr estate lies in the Moorabool Valley in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The Farrside vineyard sits on a northeast-facing slope of limestone topped with black volcanic soil. It is only 300m from the Sangreal vineyard, but its darker soils and cooler growing conditions mean these grapes are picked 10 to 12 days after all the others. The Pinot Noir here is a mixture of clones 114, 115, 777, 667 and MV6.
Vinification
The grapes are picked by hand, sorted in the vineyard and fermented in open-top fermenters. Between 40 and 50 percent of the fruit is destemmed and cold soaked for four days, and fermentation runs on natural yeast only, taking roughly 12 days. After pigeage, the wine is moved by gravity into barrels, 50 to 60 percent of them new Allier oak, and it is bottled after 18 months.