Lifford's triennial Fete du Pinot Noir is modeled after the Pinot Noir festival that happens in New Zealand every three years. We put an educational focus on our event for the trade by putting sommeliers in group seminars with a panel of top Pinot Noir producers around the world where they discuss a topic and take questions from the audience. This year's topics were terroir, rootstalks and cool climates. At the risk of sounding like an extreme wine geek--It definitely gets emphatic when a lineup of principals from Joseph Phelps, Staete Landt, Louis Jadot, Bachelder Wine and Frescobaldi get debating their own takes on natural ferments or clonal selection!

After the morning seminars we all have lunch together and move into a room for a walk around tasting with all the suppliers wines. Here are a few highlights from this years event. All pictures were taken by Lifford's Andrew Sainsbury, the man who writes our tasting notes, helps produce the Wines of the Week and makes our website run at Lifford!

Louis Jadot's epic winemaker of 42 years, Jacques Lardiere pouring some Grand Crus.

Everybody loves Jacques!

Les Burguniers Jacques Lardiere and Thomas Bachelder.

Carrick's top Pinot Noir Cuvee from Central Otago, New Zealand.

Walter Schug's pioneering Carneros Pinot Noir.

The Tawse Pinot Noirs...shone down on appropriately by the heavens.

Tawse winemaker Paul Pender chatting Niagara Pinot Noir with Domaine Queylus proprietor Gilles Chevalier.

Domaine Queylus proprietor Gilles Chevalier and his wife Marie. If you haven't heard of Queylus yet, don't worry you will...A new very premium Niagara Pinot Noir vineyard, winemaking by Thomas Bachelder.

David Lawrason, Myself, and Thomas Bachelder with Gustav Allender the winemaker at Foxtrot Vineyards on the Naramata Bench in the Okanagan.

The Foxtrot labels are as good as the wine. Watch for any of this in Ontario. Very low production and small allocation.

Celebrating Ruud Masdaam's fantastic Marlborough Pinot Noir.

Lifford's Adam Lowy tasting with David Lawrason.