Reviews
Browse our reviews below.
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Vineyard
Our New Zealand Wine of the Year, the Bell Hill Chardonnay North Canterbury Single Parcel Limeworks 2020. This 100-point white tastes like it could come straight out of the Burgundy region of Puligny-Montrachet – something akin to the premier cru of Les Pucelles – but it has a distinctive energy from the intense acidity (low pH), perhaps from its calcareous soils. Its few thousand vines are literally planted in a former lime quarry, producing wines of remarkable energy and distinction. Wow. So tight and dense, showing incredible depth and power with phenolics that integrate beautifully into the wine. Medium-bodied, it has great length, going on and on. Let this age if you can. A couple of barrels made. Special selection. Drink or hold. 100 Points
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2020 Very racy and refined with lovely length and precision, showing orange peel, strawberries and hints of spices such as cloves and white pepper. Medium- to full-bodied, it has flint, chalk and spices as well as blood oranges, flowers and dark fruit. Such balance and refinement. Creamy finish. Goes on for minutes. This needs time to open. 97 Points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2021
Lemon balm and ripe Mirabelle plum cast a fruity, aromatic charm on the nose, presenting an absolutely streamlined, citric, bright palate of immense freshness. Total verve, great, tingling, electric concentration. Completely clear-cut, precise, vivid and so long. Aromatic and lifted to the end. 97 Points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2021
Lemon balm and ripe Mirabelle plum cast a fruity, aromatic charm on the nose, presenting an absolutely streamlined, citric, bright palate of immense freshness. Total verve, great, tingling, electric concentration. Completely clear-cut, precise, vivid and so long. Aromatic and lifted to the end. 97 Points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2020
Corn husk and sun-warmed straw on the nose have a sense of chalk. The palate is concentrated and totally strait-laced with cut and linearity as well as edges of toasted corn and dried corn husk, with a mouthwatering warmth. The electric current of acidity that runs through this appears on the taut finish that rings with chalk and died corn husk. This kind of killer acidity is disarming and seductive. 95 Points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2019
A mere touch of Reine Claude plum plays on the nose alongside lifted, bright lemon peel and a touch of mossy freshness, all still with an edge of reductive smoke. The linear palate is straight like an arrow, still juicy with vivid lemon and lemon oil, showing the first glimpses of its chalky depth; profound, full-flavoured, resonant and so elegant. Exquisite tension. Very long with a lemon balm finish. 96 Points
Bell Hill Limeworks Chardonnay 2016 A mellow sense of toasted wheat bran and creamy porridge makes for an inviting nose. The palate is sinuous, with more toasted bran and a lemon sheen, almost like lemon oil, with a smooth, fluid, elongated texture. At is core, this is stony, still reductive but so clear-cut and so very lemony and long. 95 points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2012
The golden wine opens with an overtone of dried corn husk, with more air, wet chalk and an edge of blossom honey appear. The palate is blazingly bright with aromatic Amalfi lemon. All is linear, taut, absolutely profound with chalk, concentrated, arrow-like with a finish of immense saltiness that seems like drinking liquid stone. An astonishing wine. 97 Points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2021
Juicy cherry on the nose comes with an overtone of liquorice, wild rose, pepper and lichen. Red-fruited aromatics become ever more intense, heady with their purity. The palate is generous with fruit but svelte and shapely in form. The phenolics are fine, tight, tingling, mouth-watering, supported by beautifully taut acidity, bright, shining, exquisitely aromatic and so very pure with berry fruit. 97 Points
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2019
A sense of distant smoke and woodland resin on the nose opens into alluring, tart mulberry and red cherry followed by a touch of Chinese five spice. This brightness persists on the palate with vivid, pure, redcurrant juiciness on a slender, expressive, linear palate that delves into slaty chalkiness. Aromatic, slender, profound and so very pure. Long and utterly lip-smacking. 96 Points
Anne Krebiehl MW, Decanter Online
NOVEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2019
Finest Pinot Noirs and Chardonnay on the planet, made next door. These are wines of an uncommon energy and refined beauty.
At five years it remains a wine of coiled tension and latent energy. Floral treble, jasmine and citrus blossom. Funky bass, struck match, discarded oyster shells on a fire hemmed by quartz rocks. Unwavering focus, graceful drive, the length and precision that only great vineyard can build.
Anne Krebiehl MW, Decanter Online
NOVEMBER 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2019
Cold and wet weather during flowering in the spring of 2018 severely impacted the pinot noir yields for this vintage, but what has been produced is spectacular. Its spell is cast initially on the nose, blood orange and wild raspberry, some wild sage and coriander seed. But it’s in the mouth that the magic in this wine is so evident. It has an effortless grace and beautifully filigreed detail that stamps this vineyard as one of the greatest pinot noir sites in the world.
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Vineyard
Sensational Wines from the South Island of New Zealand Rather than get too carried away with an endless parade of incredible wines, the chances of many of us ever seeing them being slim at best, I have narrowed the list down a little and included some unreleased wines, as these will become available, however briefly. I have attempted to keep the notes relatively brief. These are all Bell Hill wines, not Weka Pass. Forgive the scores– I know some will be a touch sceptical of such a run of high scores – but to me, they are worth every bit of them.
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2002
But wait, I hear you say, there was no Bell Hill wine released until the 2003 vintage. Correct, but unknown to most of the world, Marcel and Sherwyn bottled 100 bottles of a Bell Hill Chardonay for their museum. What a wine. Simply one of the greatest Chardonnays I have ever tasted, from anywhere. There are figs, spices, lime pie notes, minerals and chalk here. Focused, dense but dancing. Immaculate balance and extraordinary length. Oystershell notes on the palate. Wonderfully complex and incredibly fresh. 2002 was a wonderful vintage in Burgundy, red and white, but very few of the whites would match this. 99 or 100 Points – take your pick.
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2009
Concentration, purity and focus here in a Chardonnay which is both layered and intense. Spices, limes, river pebbles, chalk, a line of salinity. Wonderfully complex, this still has a decade ahead of it. Lingers with intent. 97 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2012
Real tension here. Notes of florals, river stones, limes and an earthy chalky backing. Hints of lemon rind. Precision with a fine line of acidity and that mouthwatering salinity emerging on the palate. This has at least ten to fifteen years ahead of it. What a wine! 98 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Limeworks Chardonnay 2016
I was delighted to see this wine again. I managed a single bottle on release (which was most generous of the team), but under severe nagging from friends who were extremely keen to taste it, and being of underwhelming willpower, it was opened and enjoyed soon after arrival. On one hand, deep regret, but how can anyone regret enjoying a wine of such searing quality. A wine of coiled power. If it is possible, this seems both lean, elegant and richly flavoured. Gentle notes of florals, wet stones, minerals and chalk, oystershells and sea breezes. A laser-like focus with knife-edge balance and such energy. Ethereal elegance with sledgehammer power. It is easy to see this scoring the full Monty in ten to fifteen years, but for now, a more modest 98 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Limeworks Chardonnay 2016
I was delighted to see this wine again. I managed a single bottle on release (which was most generous of the team), but under severe nagging from friends who were extremely keen to taste it, and being of underwhelming willpower, it was opened and enjoyed soon after arrival. On one hand, deep regret, but how can anyone regret enjoying a wine of such searing quality. A wine of coiled power. If it is possible, this seems both lean, elegant and richly flavoured. Gentle notes of florals, wet stones, minerals and chalk, oystershells and sea breezes. A laser-like focus with knife-edge balance and such energy. Ethereal elegance with sledgehammer power. It is easy to see this scoring the full Monty in ten to fifteen years, but for now, a more modest 98 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2020
The possible release is for late this year. Trust me, it will be worth the wait. Taut, precise, linear with lemon notes, some cinnamon/nutmeg notes of oak still detectable. Citrus, stone fruit, figs and peaches, there is sensational power here and even though it opened up in the glass, it seems so young at the moment. In good cellars, this should provide enormous pleasure over the next 25 to 30 years (I cannot remember ever giving a white wine such a lengthy aging spectrum). 99 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Chardonnay 2021
Even younger, naturally, and proclaiming judgement at this stage may be a touch premature. Precision, power and a real minerality here, it certainly needs time to come together. Meyer lemons, river stones, stone fruit and white peaches. Salinity, energy and fine acidity, with serious length. Expect this to lift even further in the coming years. 96 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Shelf Pinot Noir 2007
The what? Shelf will be the single parcel Pinot, which the team will release in due course (2018, the initial release, has just become available). But not this one. Has there ever been a smaller production wine? Three bottles. Yes, just three. Seems Marcel dipped into the Shelf barrel from 2007 during the production of the Bell Hill Pinot, as the fruit has usually gone into that wine, and removed three bottles. Not often one gets to drink an entire third of the production of a wine. I wish I had asked Marcel whether he regretted not releasing this as the first Single Parcel Pinot. It would have been a smash hit, I’m sure. This is a star Pinot. Flesh, soy, leather, miso, the typical dried herbs that seem to be ever-present here. Hints of bay leaves. Seamless and with silky tannins, this has depth and complexity. The intensity never waivers. A truly stunning effort. Still a future. Well, it would have a future if there were any left. 98 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2012
Florals, soy, miso, cloves and a chalky base. There is a fresh, fleshy note with real underlying minerality, noticeably chalky support. Focus and grip, a hint of rose petals lingers on the finish. Excellent length. Surely a decade ahead of it. 96 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Shelf Pinot Noir 2018
The first formal release of their single parcel wine, just now released. Sour cherries, bay leaves, animal skins, flesh, tobacco leaves and undergrowth. That beautiful chalky note in support again. Bold cherry notes. Great length, the silkiest of tannins and a luxurious lingering finish. Special. Hard to envisage this not giving immense pleasure for the next twenty years. 98 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2019
The ripeness of the 2019 vintage shines through here. An utterly luminous Pinot. Plush but structured, complex and focused. This is an ethereally elegant wine with notes of cassis and aniseed, soy and cherries. Such silky tannins. This is already a complete Pinot, but such promise for the future. 99 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2020
At this stage, this is much more restrained and refined, precise and taut, with red fruits dominant, including redcurrants. The palate sees florals, liquorice, black cherries, earthy notes and cloves emerge. Superbly crafted but you would do it a disservice by touching it within the next three to four years. After that, it should drink wonderfully well for twelve to twenty years. 97 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Pinot Noir 2021
The 2021 vintage seems to be a stunning success across so much of New Zealand. This very young Pinot is already so ethereal that it almost seems to be like drinking clouds of satin. Notes of blueberries, iron, a hint of citrus rind and coffee beans are already evident, and there is that fine line of salinity. Intricately defined, there is so much potential. Give it time and then enjoy for two decades. 97 Points
Nick Ryan, Weekend Australian
JUNE 2024
Bell Hill Shelf Pinot Noir 2021
This will be the second release of this wine and it is a scintillating effort. So young but already so seamless and so supple, the potential here seems unlimited. The complexity of Martinborough and the plushness of Central Otago, the key is the finesse of the Waipara. Forest floor, cherries, dry herbs, spices, a hint of pepper. So much going on here. A wonderfully seductive texture and fabulous length. As with all Bell Hill wines, the balance is impeccable. A stunning Pinot by any standards. 99 Points
Yes, these are extremely high scores, but they are wines that absolutely thrill and if they don’t deserve them, hard to imagine what does. For me, Bell Hill is one of the great wine estates of the world. Never miss the chance to grab what you can. Ken Gargett, Quill & Pad, 12 June 2024