2023 Gentle Folk Scary Gully Pinot Noir

Highly Rated
A beautiful Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir with a whole lot of foresty wildness on offer.
5.0
Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars
1 Review

Price:
Sale price$70.00
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In stock, ready to ship
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Description

The 2023 Scary Gully Pinot Noir is all about capturing the rugged beauty of one of the highest vineyards in the Adelaide Hills. Planted back in 1984, Scary Gully sits at 620 metres and is known for producing Pinot with a wild, earthy edge. The cool, slow-growing conditions of the 2023 vintage added a bit more depth and tension to this wine, making it one of Gareth Belton’s most striking releases to date.

This Pinot is fresh and vibrant, with notes of dark berries and a subtle forest floor earthiness. The cool season has given it a fine structure and lifted perfume, while the 20% whole bunch fermentation adds a touch of complexity. Aged for 10 months in French oak (just enough new oak to add texture without overpowering the fruit), it’s a wine that balances vibrancy with just the right amount of intrigue.

With 2,454 bottles made, this is a beautiful snapshot of what Scary Gully can offer—a Pinot Noir that’s pure, fresh, and speaks to the unique character of this high-altitude vineyard. Perfect for sharing, but also worth holding onto if you can resist!

95 Points
"Peppery, herbal, lifted and grippy. A good combo of things when it strolls through a sluice of tart cherry juice and cranberry tang. Tightly coiled too, a vigorous and streamlined pinot noir, albeit it has expressive nature, a distinct personality and flair. Refreshing all up too. Detailed in its way, showing fruit, spice, savoury elements harmoniously married, though you could say the snips of whole bunch make a mark. Very good."
- Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)

95 Points - "Peppery, herbal, lifted and grippy. A good combo of things when it strolls through a sluice of tart cherry juice and cranberry tang. Tightly coiled too, a vigorous and streamlined pinot noir, albeit it has expressive nature, a distinct personality and flair. Refreshing all up too. Detailed in its way, showing fruit, spice, savoury elements harmoniously married, though you could say the snips of whole bunch make a mark. Very good." - Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)

95 points - "Bright, medium-deep purple-red colour, very intense and youthful appearance. Black cherry to dark plum aromas, big and bold, with abundant tannin adding a definite grip to the palate. Concentrated and powerful, a fuller bodied style of pinot from this maker. It would cellar well." - Huon Hooke (The Real Review)

Customer Reviews

5.0
Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars
Based on 1 review
Total 5 star reviews: 1 Total 4 star reviews: 0 Total 3 star reviews: 0 Total 2 star reviews: 0 Total 1 star reviews: 0
1 review
  • JA
    John A.
    Verified Buyer
    Wine Knowledge Level Cork Dork
    5 years ago
    Wine Knowledge Level Cork Dork
    2022 Gentle Folk Scary Gully Pinot Noir
    Reviewing
    2022 Gentle Folk Scary Gully Pinot Noir
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Stunning

    Super fresh and fruity yet really great, balanced tannins and depth.

    Definitely drink young and enjoy one of the better local Pinot Noirs.

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The Pinot noir at Scary Gully is one of the highest and oldest in the Adelaide Hills and sits upon a ridge of sandstone and quartz. The 2023 vintage ended up being the cooolest and latest vintage on record so we had some serious farming challenges on the steep slopes in the wet! However, the low yielding, cool and slow ripening season has resulted in wines that have a depth and tension we rarely achieved in the Hills, especially from 2023, so this is a true testament to the site.

Vineyard: Scary Gully, Forest Range

Planted: 1984

Clones: MV6, D5V12, GM8 and Pommard

Elevation: 620m

Aspect: SE and SW

Soil: Light loamy clay over sandstone with extensive quartz

Vinification: 20% whole cluster open top fermentation for two to three weeks followed by 10 months in oak, 20% new, before racking to tank for three months and bottled.

Harvest date: 22 April 2023

Bottled: 14 May 2024

Alc: 12.6%

pH: 3.54

TA: 6.1 g/L

Production: 2454 bottles

Price Bracket $51 to $100
Type Red
Body Light Bodied
Variety Pinot Noir
Country Australia
Region Adelaide Hills
Australian State SA
Feature High Score
Reviewed By The Wine Front
The Real Review
Critic Score 95
Size 750ml
Vintage 2023
Closure Cork

Gentle Folk

Gareth and Rainbo Belton are the Gentle Folks, both in name and in sensibility. They are gentle, soulful people, both originally seaweed experts, who turned their hands to farming grapes with an organic and sustainable approach. Today they are crafting some of the most legitimately exciting and exceptional Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the Adelaide Hills and are firmly rooted in the upper echelon of Australia's lo-fi wine scene.

Their wines cover multiple sub-regions across the Adelaide Hills. There are no additions during the winemaking process, save for a splash of SO2 at bottling to keep the wines pristine as they travel from the Beltons' home to yours. The worlds of fine wine and natural wine collide in the Gentle Folk range. They are beautiful people making increasingly breathtaking wines that you definitely want to check out.

Gareth Belton in one of his vineyards - Basket Range, Adelaide Hills, SA Gentle Folk

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