Domaine Thomson Surveyor Pinot Noir

Deep ruby in colour. The bouquet shows aromas of complex, savoury and distinctive aromas of Otago and variety, soil and ripe fruit; cherry, raspberry and plum, dried herb, wild thyme and spices of oak. A core of fruit on the palate is accentuated with acidity, the barrel spices and Otago thyme flavours accentuated by tannins. Youthful, complex and lengthy on the finish with flavours that reflect a time and place.

John Turnbull Thomson was born on 10 August 1821 at Glororum farm, near Bamburgh, Northumberland, England, and was baptised on 28 September at Warenford. He was a son of Alexander Thomson and his wife, Janet Turnbull. Thomson was educated at Duns Academy in Berwickshire, Scotland, where he mixed with the sons of the owners of large estates on Penang Island, which became the El Dorado of his boyhood dreams. After completing a course in mathematics at Aberdeen University, and studying engineering at Newcastle upon Tyne, he sailed from England with a commission to survey the estates of Scott, Brown and Company, Penang. Surveyor Thomson Wines reflects the intimate connection between the Hall-Jones family, Central Otago and New Zealand's first Surveyor General, John Turnbull Thomson, commonly known as Mr Surveyor Thomson. As a direct descendant, David has chosen to celebrate his great-great-grandfather's contribution to the exploration and mapping of southern New Zealand by naming the Lowburn vineyard in his honour. France's Burgundy region is the other inspiration for the family-owned Surveyor Thomson vineyard in the heart of Central Otago.