Felton Road - New Zealand Pinot

[dananne]

Well, we finally got around to cracking this last night. Decanted for 20 minutes before 1st pour. Deep purplish in color -- suggests a lot of extraction. Cherry/plum nose with the same flavors. I sensed the same plushness you did, and also noticed the lack of acidity. Nonexistent tannins. Really, I didn't have a sense of much framework holding it together. Flavors turn somewhat tart on the finish. No real nuances that I noticed, save for a touch of barnyard on the nose, though spicy Mexican fare a few hours earlier may have blitzed my tastebuds a bit. A straightforward style that people will either love or hate, IMHO. Flavors not as dilute as some NZ PN I've tried in the past, but I didn't like it as much as the aforementioned Dyed-in-the-Wool (which runs $18-20) or Tohu (about the same). I'd go the other way in advice on ageability -- I don't sense enough acidic balance or structure for this to hold up well, and think the fresh, fruity flavors while young are this one's stong suit. So, I'd say drink sooner rather than later, but I've been wrong about these predictions in the past [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img] Alc. 14%. Ran us $47 here in Atlanta. At that price point, I'm not rushing out for more, though I still see good things upcoming for NZ PN.

Rereading this, it perhaps comes across as more negative than intended. Frankly, it was an enjoyable wine, just a bit of a letdown given the price tag. I could buy a bottle of Ken Wright for that, and I recently ignored a better bottle at the Carlton Winemaker's Studio in Oregon from Scott Paul at that general price point, as I felt it was "out of range."