Pinot-palooza
Carriageworks, Redfern
Tasted Monday, October 6, 2014 by chatters with 748 views
Introduction
Another month another monster Pinot tasting. As my WSET chums talked up last years event and as I also went down to the Game of Rhones tasting (organised by the same people who organise Pinot Palooza) I thought I'd give it a go. Format was Aussies to the left, Kiwi's to the right and if you wanted to try any of the (good producer/entry level/mostly average vintage) Burgundies it was $5-$20 for a 50ml taste - on top of the entry fee. 150+ wines and 50+ producers, outdoors, nominal spit buckets, no where to sit or lean meant abbreviated notes...my apologies
Flight 1 - Bracket 1 - Australia (31 Notes)
coming relatively closely on the heels of the Moncur cellars pinot tasting it was a good opportunity to see how subjective my wine tasting is…Most of the 'reserve' style wines were too young and out of whack. I asked the chap at Josef Chromy, if he had complete control over when he would release his wines, when he would be putting out there main wine and he responded 2016. An observation would also be that Australian wine makers still seem to struggle with the idea of stalks and their inclusion with the relative ripeness of the stalks: again there were a lot of stalky wines here that contained quite green notes. I'm wondering if they are doing a couple of batches - say one harvested young to get acidity and one harvested late for stalk ripeness and then assembling them to make a whole which doesn't seem to be working. Perhaps they all just need a bit of time to calm down (though the 2010 Stonier W-WB was still mad as a bag of spanners even after four years)
Flight 2 - Bracket 2 - New Zealand (37 Notes)
the largest selection of pinots I've seen from New Zealand outside the six nations tasting last year. Mind you, I can't say I go looking for them as a rule. A few interesting ones here. Experience teaches me I'm more enamoured with the wines of Martinborough, specifically wairapa, than those of Central Otago but I think I may need to revise my thinking. More tasting required I suspect! The Fromm wines were probably the most enjoyable.
Closing
If ever a tasting reinforced the old adage vintage for cabernet producer for pinot it was this one. Though the core of fruit was there for almost all producers (mostly on a spectrum of redcurrant through to red and black cherry) that is where the commonality ceased with different people using different oak regimes and differing stalk techniques and yeast approaches as well as a range of other techniques to get the most out of their vines. There were a couple of wines that made me pause - the Kooyong Meres was probably the best of them. Anyway, great tasting, great fun.
2011 Yering Station Pinot Noir Village
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley
On the nose cherry, spice, slight bonfire, fresh herbs. In the mouth tough, tart fruit and quite short
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2011 Yering Station Pinot Noir
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley
On the nose concentrated cherry, touches of smoke, sweet spice and slight green/stalky notes. In the mouth there are muted flavours of cherry, a little tough tannin, slightly astringent and alcoholically warm on the finish. Meh.
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2012 Yering Station Pinot Noir Reserve
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley
cherry and raspberry, some earth on the nose but, despite agitation, it's quite closed. In the mouth here is dense textured tart fruit, slight green notes and chewy tannins…I would suggest this is far too young.
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2013 Circe Pinot Noir Circe
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Aromas of toast, red berries, slight smoked bacon and a very herbaceous element. In the mouth there are flavours of Smokey red berries, quite juicy, and these persists under drying front of mouth grip. Hmm.
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2012 Circe Pinot Noir Hillcrest Road
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Herbaceous aromas initially then crushed rocks, strawberry compote and sweet spice…in the mouth chewy tannin dominates fresh picked strawberries which drop off a little too rapidly.
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2012 Port Phillip Estate Pinot Noir Red Hill
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Aromas of fresh strawberries, slight sweet spice and tiny cedar touches. More of the same on the palate…slight drying tannins. Fruit does persist but lightens in depth considerably on the medium plus length
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2012 Port Phillip Estate Pinot Noir Balnarring
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Strawberry compote, perfumed almost floral top notes, very slight candy floss on the nose. In the mouth the wine is surprisingly juicy with tangy fruit and plentiful front of mouth tannic grip. Hmm
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2012 Kooyong Pinot Noir Massale
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
cherry, berry and earth are the most discernible notes on the nose. In the mouth the wine is juicy with fresh berry and cherry flavours, some spice and a touch of tannic grip. Simple. Okay.
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2012 Kooyong Pinot Noir Estate
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Aromas of perfumed, toasted berries, sweet spice, cloves. Juicy, long, fruit and young. Very quaffable. Perhaps lacks a little complexity.
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2012 Kooyong Pinot Noir Meres
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Aromas of strawberries, raspberries and slight maraschino cherry over spice. In the mouth, though, the spicy notes dominates the berry fruit with fine silky tannins all of which persist on the long finish. Young. Balanced. Good
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2013 Stargazer Pinot Noir
Australia, Tasmania, Coal River
Aromas of bonfires, smoked bacon, biscuit over muted red cherry and almost coffee notes. In the mouth there are flavours of sweet cherry, spice, some stalky notes but they are not unripe. Obviously needs time to integrate but okay.
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2013 Dalrymple Vineyards Pinot Noir
Australia, Tasmania, Pipers River
medium minus intensity aromas of cherry and cherry blossom, slight sweet spices. On the palate there are medium minus intensity flavours of red cherry and slight tannic grip. The muted fruit continues to carry on a medium length finish. Meh
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2012 Dalrymple Vineyards Pinot Noir Cottage Block
Australia, Tasmania, Pipers River
on the nose a glue, almost plasticine aroma that dissipate with agitation to reveal cherry, vanilla and cream. In the mouth the sweet generic red fruit is joined by spice, talc like tannin and alcohol warmth is introduced on the long finish. Not for me.
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2012 Dalrymple Vineyards Pinot Noir Single Site Coal River
Australia, Tasmania, Coal River
That 'pinot' smell on the nose, cherry, berry, toast and also slight green notes. In the mouth the wine has flavours of juicy cherry, the mouthfeel/body is quite 'wet' and it lacks a little structure. The fruit drops quite quickly. Meh
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2012 Dalrymple Vineyards Pinot Noir Bicheno
Australia, Tasmania, Coal River
Medium plus intensity aromas of concentrated berry and cherry, cream, sweet spices and vanilla. In the mouth there is ripe generic red fruits, very juicy and mouth watering acidity as well as almost coffee notes with fine tannins. Hmm.
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2013 Josef Chromy Pinot Noir Pepik
Australia, Tasmania, Northern Tasmania
Aromas of tart red currants over berry, a creamy almost buttery quality. In the mouth the wine has juicy red fruit, very slight toasted caramel oak, front of mouth grip. The fruit gets more dilute with time but the whole is usurpingly refreshing.
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2013 Josef Chromy Pinot Noir
Australia, Tasmania, Northern Tasmania
On the nose there are slightly green, stalky notes, red currant over strawberries and cream. On the palate the red currant and strawberry fruit is in tandem with plentiful tannic grip that has some stalky notes. Long. I can see what's being attempted here and this is one of the better examples I've seen. Though the wine is not strictly in balance the whole is harmonious. Very young.
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2012 Stonier Pinot Noir
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Medium minus intensity aromas of red berries and cherries, light weight but by no means unpleasant. In the mouth there are medium minus favours of sweet red berry fruit, front of mouth grip. Short, simple. Nice enough
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2012 Stonier Pinot Noir Reserve
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Red berries and cherries with perfumed floral notes. The fruit is more focussed and concentrated than the straight stonier and a touch more ripe on the nose. In the mouth the wine is quite dense textured with right tannin then ripe red fruits, cream, spice, long, needs time.
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2012 Stonier Pinot Noir Merron's
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Ripe fruit and a perfumed but woody herbaceousness and a very slight green apple note. IN the mouth heavily spiced notes and cream flavours dominate red berry and currant fruit. They're then replaced by hefty tannin. Fruit does persist though it is rather squashed under this drying weight. Needs time.
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2010 Stonier Pinot Noir W-WB
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Whoa! Clove, wood, cedar and sandalwood, no discernible fruit on the nose. In the mouth the wine is stalky and chewy with slightly charry bonfire notes…crazy…close to undrinkable. After 4 years in bottle I'm not sure where this is going.
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2013 Yabby Lake Vineyard Pinot Noir Red Claw
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
struck match, slight reductive over ripe cherry and spice. In the mouth the wine has simple cherry flavours, firm tannins. Meh
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2013 Yabby Lake Vineyard Pinot Noir Single Vineyard
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Touches of red currant under strawberry, sweet spice, very slight green notes. In the mouth the wine is juicy but with green notes and quite tough and chewy tannin dominating some muted red berries
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2012 Yabby Lake Vineyard Pinot Noir Single Block Release Block 2
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
Medium plus intensity aromas that are funky with struck match over concentrated red berries, slight cream and spice. In the mouth the wine is juicy and spicy with dense fruit - not over ripe just full on, and some almost bonfire notes and chewy tannin.
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2012 Curly Flat Pinot Noir Williams Crossing
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges
Medium plus intensity perfumed red berries and sweet spice redolent of cinnamon amongst others. Juicy fruit drops quickly on the palate and alcohol warmth takes it's place on the relatively short finish. Meh.
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2011 Curly Flat Pinot Noir
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges
toasted red berry fruit, plentiful sweet spice and a certain red currant note. On the palate juicy, tart red fruit is quickly enclosed by a fine tannic embrace, fruit drops a little. Meh.
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2011 Curly Flat Pinot Noir The Curly
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges
toasted oak over red berry and vanilla notes, perfumed cedar as well. In the mouth the wine has juicy but quite thin fruit which is quickly swamped by cream, vanilla and toasted oak which lends tannic weight. Meh
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2008 Curly Flat Pinot Noir
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges
slight sour red berry, leather notes, spice (slight pepper notes), tiny earth and mushroom here as well. In the mouth the wine is juicy with slight tart fruit, Plentiful tannic grip as well. It's all a bit meh.
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2012 Shadowfax Pinot Noir
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Geelong
A little bit funky farmyard on the nose with stalks backing it up. Unfortunately there is little discernible fruit. In the mouth the wine is juicy but chewy and stalky elements sweep aside and fruit notes as well as sponging up the juicy notes.
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2011 Shadowfax Pinot Noir
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Geelong
slight smoky, whole bunch greenness, closed cedar, sandalwood. In the mouth there is some red fruit which is obliterated by tight tannic grip. Meh
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2012 Shadowfax Pinot Noir Macedon Ranges
Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges
savoury but perfumed strawberry over raspberry fruit, spice, cream and vanilla. The wine is sweet and juicy with strawberry fruit then tannic grip on the mid palate. Nice
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