24/03/2026
๐๐๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐น๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐น๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฉ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ก๐ผ๐ถ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฏ โ ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ ๐ง๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ณ๐๐๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฆ๐น๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ! ๐ฟ๐ท
Don't let the name fool you โ there is absolutely nothing sleepy about this wine. Named after the vineyard, not its personality, the Astrolabe Sleepers Pinot Noir from New Zealand's wild and windswept Kฤkerengลซ Coast comes bounding out of the glass like it's had three flat whites and a serious point to prove.
In the glass it's a gorgeous bright garnet โ the kind of colour that makes you hold it up to the light just to feel sophisticated. Then the nose arrives like a love letter written by someone who actually knows what they're doing: dried rose petals, violets, lifted red cherry, dried herbs, and then โ wait for it โ wild truffles. Yes, actual truffles. Growing in the roots of the trees surrounding the vineyard, apparently just hanging around making this wine smell extraordinary. Fancy without even trying.
On the palate it's delicate but alive โ pomegranate, sweet ripe fruit, earthy leather, and that gorgeous mineral thread that comes straight from the limestone soils beneath the vines. The fruit is always lifted and pure, the texture silky, and the finish long and complex. Two winters ageing in French oak have added lovely depth without muscling in on all that elegance.
And the winemaking? Winemaker Simon Waghorn does it properly โ hand-picked fruit, wild vineyard yeast, hand-plunged open-top vats, natural malolactic fermentation. No shortcuts. No nonsense. Just respect for what this remarkable coastal site produces.
Perfect with roast duck, herbed lamb, mushroom risotto, a truffle pasta if you're feeling theatrical, a serious cheese board, or a quiet evening where you finally crack open something genuinely special.
Swing by ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ in Phuket and grab this before it's gone โ bottles like this don't sit around waiting forever, even if the vineyard is called Sleepers! ๐ทโจ
