2025 Stonier Pinot Noir

Established in 1978 Stonier Vineyards was one of the pioneers on the Mornington Peninsula and has recently returned to being locally owned and run after a period of corporate ownership. The fruit for Stonier Pinot Noir is derived from a selection of estate and leased vineyards, the majority of which sit on the red volcanic basalt between Merricks and Red Hill. The high elevation (200m+) Red Hill vineyards are the primary component of this wine which provides the lovely lifted red fruit profile.
2025 is considered to be one the great vintages of the last 25 years for Mornington Peninsula.

Powerful, flavour packed and expansive – this is one moreish Mornington Pinot Noir.

Dark red core with black toned edges and a crimson red hue. Showing impressive intensity, the nose features fragrant dark cherry, strawberry and anise scents which are complimented by violet, bramble, forest floor and spicy dried herb notes. Rich, supple and expansive, the gorgeous palate is detailed with dark cherry, strawberry and more subtle anise flavours. Notions of spicy cedar, delicate forest floor and dried herbs unfold across the back half. Concentrated and powerful, it has seamlessly integrated, silky smooth tannins and a long moreish finish.
Drink over the next 5-6 years.
Alc. 13.5%

Other Reviews….
There’s volume, there’s flavour, there’s definition, there’s delight with every sip. Wonderful aromas of florals, autumn leaves, wood spices and warm earth filter through to the mid-weighted palate. In wait, dark cherries, pips, blood orange zest, chinotto and spicy oak, with textural tannins and lively acidity. There's much more detail coming through this vintage. Nice one. Drink by 2035.
95 Points
Jan Faulkner - James Halliday’s Australian Wine Companion

All the 2025 releases from Stonier have been reviewed to The Winefront site – well worth checking out – but I thought I’d include a note on this ‘standard’ release because it’s a contender for the Best Value Pinot Noir of 2026. I appreciate that $45 isn’t the usual price that you’d associate with value but in comparative Pinot Noir terms it qualifies.
I’ve been tasting and drinking Stonier Pinot Noir for a very long time – 30 years-ish – and this is the best standard Stonier Pinot Noir that I can recall. It’s a pearler. Its quality is so high because it’s more complex than the latest round capital gains tax changes, is beautifully interwoven with tannin, is juiced up with alarmingly more-ish fruit flavour and from start to finish, more to the point, it mounts the most coherent and articulate arguments int its favour. It tastes brilliant, it tastes interesting, it feels the goods and it lingers. I couldn’t be more on board.
95 Points
CampbellMattinson.com

This wine, perhaps more than any other in the range, proves that Stonier is in the best of winemaking and wine growing hands.
Buy this, cellar it, drink it. I’ve loved this ‘standard’ Stonier Pinot Noir for decades but I dare say that this is the best release that I’ve tried. Sheesh. It’s complex, it’s cohesive, it’s balanced and it feels authentic, the latter both to its variety and to its region. Mostly and ultimately though it’s more-ish. It’s cherried and strawberried and plummy and sweet spiced, with soil or undergrowth notes interwoven. Tannin profile is top notch, and the balance between juicy drinkability and tension is so perfectly judged. Last year’s releases gave an excellent insight into the uptick of Stonier but this year’s releases take things up again. Drink 2026-2032+
95 Points
Campbell Mattinson – The Wine Front