Mark Henderson taste tests some Central Otago pinot noirs.
My panel members Alastair McLaren and Ricky Collins have commented on the increasing diversity we are seeing in these pinot noirs.
Once fairly straightforward, it is now harder and harder to pin down a ''Central Otago style''.
Greater availability of new clonal material, ever-increasing vine age, vineyards on a raft of different soil types and in varied microclimates, winemakers who now have considerable experience with Central Otago fruit, and the high skills base and creativity of those same winemakers is teasing new and exciting expressions of pinot noir out of Central.
For a wine lover it's a fun ride.
The wines were tasted blind and in random order.
Price: $50
Rating: Excellent
Dusty oak and dark cherry, moving to red fruits and strawberry. Gorgeous, appealingly fragrant nose with the oak retreating and savoury notes developing. Smoky, savoury and earthy notes on the palate: wild herbs on the finish. A delicate wine; not a fruit bomb, but nuanced and delicious.
Price: RRP $27
Rating: Good
A fruit-driven nose; young and vibrant with dark cherry and sweet, ripe, red fruits. Nice silky entry with sweet red fruits again evident. Dries up a little in the mid-palate. Has a Beaujolais feel, with juicy, freshly squished berries. Low in tannin and made to enjoy now. A fresh, delicate wine.
Price: $60
Rating: Very good
A whisper of funk (burnt match) on pouring. Brooding on the nose with dark fruits and plums. Pure and fruit-driven with fine tannins. Very appealing: sweet and ripe though a touch short on the finish at first. This began to open up with time: a smoky, dusty note and then greater length with its plum and cherry fruit.
Price: $40
Rating: Good
Relatively shy on the nose but varietal with a whisper of spice. Quite subtle but begins to open up. The acidity quite noticeable with a bracing cut to the palate giving a rhubarb sweet/sour note. A woodsy touch on the finish. A burnt cherry note came with aeration. Better with food.
Price: $46-$48
Rating: Excellent
Youthful nose; shy at first and then sweet red fruits moving into the cherry spectrum. Concentrated and dense wine yet maintains poise. Ripe cherries and dark fruits on the palate with good tannic grip. This feels as if it has been built for the long haul. Nicely balanced, with very good length. A nice package.
Price: $30
Rating: Excellent
Fragrant lifted nose, a hint of sulphur blows off as the fruit comes up. Hints of forest floor/mushroom and then rhubarb. Ripe and sweetly fruited entry with some crisp acidity and fine tannins. Raspberry and cherry build while the mouthfeel develops a real plushness. Finishes long and with real freshness. Very fine and lovely balance.
Price: $40
Rating: Very good
Another game-of-two-halves wine. Initially shy on nose: eucalypt first up giving way to hints of raspberry and cherry. Quite tight and bound up with powerful and grippy tannins totally dominating the wine. With aeration; this changed enormously and dramatically for the better. The tannins subsumed, the fruit intensified: brooding but with depth. Now rather tasty.
Price: RRP $30
Rating: Good
A typical dark cherry nose with oak notes evident. Earthy, rather than fruit sweet. Nothing out of place here, balanced with some interest. Cherries, spices and a beetroot hint with good length. A grippy acid/tannin finish though which does harden up with aeration.
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