After a 2008 Central Pinot horizontal around harvest time, the same tasting group - minus some and plus others - caught up at Chez Marriott for the second excursion into pinot. This time, the scope was broadened to the rest of the world, with fairly loose parameters in terms of vintage, styles and so forth. I was responsible for sourcing the wines, which were served blind in paired flights, and instead I was looking for stellar examples from each region that were all relatively comparative price wise. As host I didn’t have time for detailed tasting notes, but here are some brief recollections from the evening (all wines opened an hour prior to double-decanted serving):
1. 2005 Stefano Lubiana Pinot Noir (Derwent Valley, Tasmania, 13.5%) From a cracker vintage in Tassie (happens only a couple of times every decade..), I was expecting more from this. Very muted on the nose, with just some hints of earth, fungus and spice. Medium bodied, the acidity was powering through the palate and accentuating tartness on the finish. Very much a red fruit profile on the palate, but compared to its partnered wine, this lacked texture and fruit. All agreed that it would (and did) show better with more air and food.
2. 2006 Bethel Heights Pinot Noir (Willamette Valley, Oregon, 14.5%) This to me had a lovely nose, with a balanced mixture of floral, stalk, fruit and oak, even if they were all a bit supercharged. The vanillin oak and sweet berry fruit was a giveaway of New World origins, as was the warmth on the palate from the slightly accentuated alcohol. Medium to full bodied, an enticing silken texture and wads of juicy, ripe fruit on the palate. The sort of wine you’d guarantee to please a crowd and despite the somewhat bold, overt characteristics, you sense there is an underlying pedigree of charm and finesse that may have been overwhelmed this vintage. All in all, a classy wine and a producer I’m eager to follow in the future.
3. 2008 Dugat-Py Gevrey Chambertin (Burgundy, 13%) I’ve since learnt that Allen Meadows and other esteemed burgundy experts regard opening a Dugat-Py less than ten years old a complete waste of time. Now I know that for sure. Super primary on the nose, it’s a great big red cherry parade with some stalky elements. The palate is just as primary, with a pure, almost crystalline vein of mineral acidity coursing through before the tannins begin tearing your mouth apart on the finish. Thin, astringent and really tough going. Built for the long, long haul but I wonder whether this particular wine will ever find balance.
4. 2007 Cristom Mt Jefferson Cuvee (Willamette Valley, Oregon, 13.5%) Beautiful nose of crushed flowers, stalk, spice, earth and red berry and stone fruit. So feminine and beguiling, just a joy to smell. There is just something so distinctive about whole bunch use. Medium bodied, plenty of varietal typicity, a gentle undercurrent of acidity reinforcing the freshness and refined, slighly grainy but perfectly judged tannins on the finish. An exercise in real pinot appreciation. A table favourite.
5. 2006 Felton Road Block 3 (Bannockburn, Central Otago, 14.5%) This was the flight of the night. The Felton opened with that tell-tale cavalcade of forest, fruit, spice and overall charm. Soft and inviting, there was never any heat or warmth despite the higher alcohol, with a judicious marriage of oak, fruit and acidity on the palate. Still fresh as a daisy, I can’t imagine this getting any better but there is plenty of oomph for those that wish to cellar longer. Ripe, sweet tannins on the finish and plenty of length. Comments from around the room said that they would love this wine to be Kiwi, and it was.
6. 2007 Bouchard Volnay Taillepieds (Burgundy, 13%) And I breathed a sigh of relief. When your budget for Burgundy at a tasting like this can’t push past the boundaries of $150, and you have a Felton Block 3 to contend with, some might say it’s an exercise in futility, but I think we nailed it. The Bouchard was the thinking man’s pinot, the Felton was the drinking man’s pinot. More obvious stalk characters on the nose, but bound up into spice and floral notes with fruit secondary. There was x-factor here too, a brooding layer of charm and complexity that remained shy and obscured. The palate, medium bodied, with superb balance and texture that behaved true to origins - this was unmistakably Burgundy. Tannins were ripe - youthful but fine. Genuinely enjoyable to drink and those in attendance mused that, over the course of a bottle, the Bouchard may hold greater interest than the Felton.
7. 2005 Bindi Block 5 (Macedon Ranges, Victoria, 13.5%) My first introduction to Bindi and I certainly was not disappointed. Winemaker Michael Dillon was kind enough to dig this out of his library stock for us. Crushed herbs, blossoms, mixed spectrum fruit and hints of oak all wrapped up in an ethereal aromatic package. Very pure and unadulterated. Medium bodied, an almost citrus acidity drives the elegant, refined palate that shows considerable restraint yet considerable intensity; a paradox. Very fine tannins round out the finish. It’s a wine that, to me, speaks volumes of place thanks to the lack of winemaking input (which in itself indicates excellent winemaking). Interestingly, of all the wines, this was showing best the following night. My equal favourite.
8. 2003 Craggy Range Block 1 (Te Muna, Martinborough, 13.5%) This was immediately super mushroomy with plenty of wet earth notes. Very full bodied, with lots of weight, fruit, oak and texture. For mine, a totally different way of making pinot to the former. A polished package, with ripe fruit and slippery tannins, it’s a bit of a monster really (still) and unfortunately those mushroom aromatics are just a bit much for me. With more air this moved into a very malty/spirity direction.
By no means comprehensive, the tasting did serve as an interesting foray into the world of pinot. There were new regions and new producers to discover for many of the attendees, and it provided perspective to the different styles of winemaking with both good and bad examples found across all regions, depending on your own personal preferences for oak, body, alcohol, fruit spectrum, etc. Personally, I find myself leaning more and more to whole bunch use and I really enjoy those tactile, even slightly gritty tannins that just give the tongue a bit of extra work on the finish. In any company, the Bindi, Bouchard, Cristom and Felton would fail to disappoint.
An indulgent Saturday night in with a lovely piece of salmon, kipfler potatoes, artichoke salad, ice cream, footy semi finals. Need something to go with all of that (except the ice cream).
First, the leftovers of an 07 Carrick Pinot Noir, which is tasty without hitting any distinctive highs, and lives in the dry red spectrum for pinot noir.
For the meal: Chardonnay required. And how good is this one?
It has a bit of colour on it which might be a slight concern for a 2006, and there is a bit of oak about this wine too. it is advanced fr 4 years of age, and for my palate this is right in the groove, right now. Smells of oats, almond meal and cumquats - lovely balance between savouriness and fruit, and clearly open for business now. The palate is just lovely. A melange of many things - almond meal, orange citrus, red apple, honeydew melon and honey - not as an aged characteristic that is a step before oxidation, but just a richness in the flavours. Its ripe and ready to go but at the same time restrained and nicely balanced for drinking right now. Well, I’ll be doing so for safety reasons.
Burghound scored this at about 90, for those who enjoy such things.
What a tasty mouthful.
Prüm. There are a few Prüms - S.A.-, Studert-, Wiens-, but there is only one Joh. Jos. Prüm. Revered by many, and now priced out of reach for many more, particularly the higher pradikat wines. But the JJ Prüm estate will get away with that, such are the reputations of their wines.
And I’m finding the quality matches the reputation - every egg a bird as they say. The selection this evening was the 04 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett. On recommendation of Amai Prüm herself, this is now entering its drinking window - albeit just! My trusty cellar database tells me I’ve been sipping these since 2006, and now I”m wondering what I was thinking.
The wait is worth it. This wine is in a nice place just now. The delicate florals of Wehlener Sonnenuhr have blossomed into something else. Apples. Limes. Passionfruit and papaya. Picking up a touch of wild honey that makes this delicious juicy and tropical - unusual for this label, this vineyard and this vintage! It is still loaded to the gills with sulphur, and might put some drinkers off. The palate shape is remarkable - its complete, and satisfying with a lovely balance between delicate primary youth and the first signs of of the complexity of bottle age just flickering to life. Ad all of this resting nicely on a racy, slatey acid backbone. This has indeed just hit its drinking window - and lasted about 30 minutes once the cork was out. I wonder what some breathing would have revealed. A balanced, complete palate package, what a joy.
Cheers
Andrew