Together with the Stefano Lubiana tasted yesterday, this wine falls in a sparsely populated class that I shall call "second label Australian Pinot Noirs that don't taste like second label Australian Pinot Noirs." Breaking new ground, as always.
This wine reeks of winemaking cred. Really funky aromas of tomato sauce, barbecued snags, sparkling red fruit and spice. A touch of merde too. Personally, I love it, not least for the fact that it will probably divide drinkers in an instant. Despite everything that's going on here, fruit flavour seems quite straightforward, which is a nice foil to the winemaking artifact. Above all, it communicates an immediate, confident sense of style.
The palate is light to medium bodied with a good acid structure. The entry is deceptively gentle and seems a bit hollow until you realise there's fruit starting to creep up and over your tongue. Flavours of light red cherry, sappy stalk and vanilla sizzle on the back of firm, fine acid. The middle palate presents with a rush of freshness. Again, no great complexity of fruit, though it is distinctive in character. A bit of fruit weight gathers on the after palate, moving into a plum-like flavour spectrum and gaining impact thanks to some ripe, loose tannins. A laidback, sweet finish rounds the wine off nicely.
Certainly not the last word in complexity or intensity, yet very attractive as a wine style. I like that it seems to make few concessions to perceived taste at this price point; indeed, it's a wine with a personality all its own, not afraid to make friends or alienate in turn. Nice one.
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