Cork v. Screwcap

Have a look at this supplement I stumbled upon. There is much in here I disagree with. I wonder what the advertisers paid Harpers for this supplement? What worried me most is the article by Paul White. He lives in New Zealand.

Cork v. Screw Cap

We are really getting into reduction in these posts!! One of the arguments used against screw cap is that screw cap increases the chances of reductive character in wine. This article would suggest that the opposite is more true.

But Then Again Reduction Can Be Bad

At a BBQ tonight. Not fantastic weather. By chance there was a 2004 Central Otago Pinot Noir Mt Maud. A real contrast to last night's wine. This was fermented onion and rhubarb in the mouth masked by a burnt rhubarb nose. The saving grace was that the aftertaste morphed into a nice nectarine type flavour. Not really what you expect from a Pinot Noir, but interesting.

The Mt Maude 2004 is probably all Wanaka fruit. Wanaka is much colder than the Cromwell Basin. So while both areas were hit by frosts that year, the Cromwell Basin fruit had more nitrogen available to it so the reduction was not as great.

Moral - a limited amount of reduction can be a useful component in a great wine, too much can ruin.

I marked tonight's wine 12/20. The night before for would be an 18/20.

The Value Of Age, And Why Reduction Can Be A Good Thing

I opened a bottle of a 2004 Central Otago Pinot Noir last night. It was a famous wine. It was rated early on as a great wine (a best NZ red) by a well known magazine. Everyone in the business tried it, and most disagreed with the review. It was a wine that showed too much reductive character. There was fruit there, and good oak handling, but everything was masked by a burnt rubber and forest floor character. I was one of those in the negative camp.

But hats off to the judges back in late 2005. This wine is great. So complex. Oak, lovely concentrated cherry, and still that reductive character, but only in the background. In France and New Zealand there are Pinot Noir makers who don't see reduction as the fault that others do. This 2004 shows why.

The good news is that I no longer regret having three more bottles in my cellar.

2007 New Zealand Pinot Noir

I am back now from Hamner Springs where I have attended one of the most important winemaking events of the year - the Southern Pinot Noir Workshop. Winemakers gather from aroung New Zealand and further afield to discuss wines from the barrel prior to bottling. It is usually held in the last week of the summer school holidays, and because no one else puts up their hand, Canterbury winemakers put it on for the rest.

This is a great chance to reach a snapshot view of a vintage, in this week's case 2007.

Unfortunately, as we knew might be the case, nationwide it was not a great vintage. Canterbury, Marlborough and Martinborough were all affected by frosts, bad fruit set etc, while Central Otago only had a middling season. And unfortunately, while the quality was down so are quantities.

There are real stresses apparent in the wines and many are also showing some pretty unripe fruit and stem character. My preference was for the Central Otagos, but even for them it wasn't a great year. But there is considerable variation in Central and some wines will be much better than others. Some of the better wines will be on a par with the 2006 vintage.

The good news is that 2008 vintage is looking much better for most areas. There is a bit of frost damage around and there is some set variation, but stresses will be lower. The yields and quality in Central is looking fantastic at this stage.

I çan't claim to be a Central Otago veteran by any means, but what is interesting me is that Central Otago is proving to be the most consistent area compared to Canterbury and Martinborough. Consistent low yields in the Wairarapa and Canterbury must be heartbreaking for some operators.

To end on a positive note, I was really pleased with the quality of work done by the winemakers with the 2007 material.

Food Miles

I have been angry about attempts to paint New Zealand wine in the UK as environmentally unfriendly because of the distance that the wine has to travel to get there. Frieght is such a small part of the picture, these arguments are grossly distorted. I have worked in Burgundy and Alsace and know that French wine is certainly no less carbon intensive than New Zealand, and I slao know that most of the sales to the UK travel by truck. I am sure using sea freight from New Zealand produces a lower carbon footprint than using a truck from Burgundy or further afield.

But are we doing enough to counter these silly arguments?

I was pleased to read a press release from Alpha Domus issued at lunchtime on this issue. I agree with every word. I particularly like the ending..

"Fortunately, it seems, overseas consumers are choosing quality wine over those with lower food miles too. Figures show the latest New Zealand wine exports to the UK have increased by 23 percent on the previous year. "

It is good that the UK consumer is smart enough to see through this narrow anti-trade argumentation from a few activists. My guess is that there are some producers in France and UK importers who a fanning the flames on this issue.

A Tasting Of Some Lesser Known Central Otago Pinot Noir

These are my tasting notes of 13 Pinot Noir wines from the 2006 vintage. They were tasted on 25 January. My recommendations are the wines from Anthem, Block 124, Grasshopper Rock, Judge Rock, Mount Michael, Sleeping Dogs and van Asch. Mount Michael probably came out on top, with the Anthem wine perhaps showing the most long term promise. Given that Mount Michael is made from older vines and is 100% from the Cromwell basin (ie the hottest location) this result is perhaps not surprising. These are my personal comments. Everyone's palate is different. I tend to be on the critical side, for which apologies in advance. 15/20 is a good score.

Anthem 2006

Fruit dominates the nose. It is a dark red cherry. Very elegant wine which will age well. There is some obvious acid that needs time to soften. Perhaps a little too alcoholic at a bit of 14, but the extra sugar was probably necessary to balance the acid. This is 80% Gibbston fruit, and this tells with great silky mouthfeel. Oak is prominent but well handled. I want to drink this wine in 2011. 16/20

Block 124 Vineyard

A reductive character to the nose which is apparent to the taste also, but more restrained in the mouth. Quite elegant. An interesting mint/spearminty character. Acid is quite high but the alcohol at 13.7% is not as dominant. Good mouthfeel. 15/20

Domain Road Vineyard

I was expecting more given the Bannockburn location. Must be the young vines. Very closed, hard to penetrate. Elegant wine, but flavours as closed as the nose. There is red fruit there but not as apparent as it should be. Also masked by higher acids. Perhaps this crop was not that ripe, or perhaps it was over cropped? 12/20

Domaine Jaquiery

Out of interest I tried two wines the 2003 and the 2006. This is one of the coldest and most wind exposed sites in Central Otago. These notes were written before reading the Wanaka Sun article below...

2003 Slight Brett and slight reduction apparent on nose. Very barnyard and forest floor, and again some real reductive character in the mouth. Very pale colour and lack of concentration to fruit. Acid too high as was the alcohol. Fifth amendment

2006 Much better colour than 2003. And much cleaner nose. A bit of vanilla (is this all French oak?). Cherry flavours with some good mouth feel, but the flavours die fast. There is a bit of acid, which is a bit to dominant. 13/20

Grasshopper Rock

Great spice on nose, dark red fruit flavours. This is nice sweet fruit on the front palate. A real violet character also. Only complaint is the acid. Good potential shown by this wine which is a first vintage. 16/20

Hawkshead Vineyard

An elegant nose with a hint of reduction. Dark red fruit. The fruit might have been a little unripe. There is a real hole in the middle palate, which is a shame because the front and side are fine. There is a slightly quirky wet wool aftertaste. Not sure if this is a reduction issue or was there a funky barrel? 14/20

Judge Rock

Nice elegant fruit on nose. Good mouthfeel and good balance. The fruit is pleasant and there is a slight herbal character also. Was this a little over cropped? This isn't all new vine so some more intensity would have been expected. Interesting flavours though. 15/20

McArthur Ridge

Well perfumed nose. Violet and rose petal for me. Restrained fruit in mouth but a wine that shows too much acid and too much alcohol. Could have been Gibbston in a cold year, but this is Alex fruit. Maybe this is just a problem with this being a first crop. 13/20

Mount Michael

Very elegant nose showing violets and ripe fruit. Good mouthfeel. Ripe fruit, dark red plum. Also good to see a wine that has the alcohol in balance. Very well made. Good handling of oak also. 17/20

Pisa Moorings

A slightly dirty nose, without strong concentration. This shows in the mouth. There is fruit there but it is too restrained. Maybe there is some bottle variation here, as I am disappointed.
12/20

Sleeping Dogs

Spicy perfumed nose with violet also. Elegant fruit and spice, complex. Oak well handled. This has some tannins also. Some stems/ whole bunch from Gibbston? Brave. 15/20

Surveyor Thomson

Good spicy nose. Complex, dark red fruit flavours. Acid and alcohol were a bit too high. 14/20

I tried their 2005 also. The flavours were not as intense, but it seemed a wine in more balance and more elegant. I liked it more. 16/20

van Asch

Very floral, violet nose. Floral character in mouth also. The oak and tannins a bit more noticeable than many wines I have tried today. A bit acid also. 15/20

My conclusions : Interesting tasting. Age of the vine matters. Single vineyard seems to help also. 2006 was a heavy cropping year, for some of these wines it might have been too heavy. Acid and alcohol remain challenges. I would happily buy over half these wines. Many of these vineyards are showing strong potential.