New World: Pinot Noir, New Zealand
2015: Gold 4 Silver 10 Bronze 5 Commended 10
2014: Gold 4 Silver 2 Bronze 7 Commended 5
To paraphrase Marvel Comics, ‘with great expectation comes great responsibility’. Our tasters always expect a lot from Kiwi Pinot – partly because the Kiwis tell them they should and partly because the prices more or less demand it. And every year, they’re left slightly dissatisfied.
Yes, they find some good wines (19 medals is an impressive performance – especially for a finicky grape like Pinot), but a bit more finesse and a bit less chunky oak/tannin might not go amiss. Of course, it’s hard, given Kiwi UV levels, but if the country’s winemakers want a bit of unsolicited advice from our tasters, it would be to turn the volume down a bit.
Star Performer
Congrats to Spy Valley. The Envoy made it on to the Gold List for the second year running, joined this year by the winery’s standard Pinot for an impressive one-two.
From the Tasting Teams
‘Central Otago Pinot Noir works well with bolder style foods, things like Asian and Japanese food, such as teppanyaki or yakiniku-style food – dishes where Burgundy would lose out.’ Andrea Fasan, La Petite Maison
‘You definitely have a chance to put more than one NZ Pinot on the list, because the different regions do bring something different.’ Neil Bruce, Studio Alto
‘I don’t need the world from New Zealand Pinot, just a bit of lift and spice. Too many had stewy, squishy fruit and clunky oak. There weren’t enough I wanted to keep on drinking.’ Sam Caporn MW, consultant
‘Central Otago Pinot Noir is a great cross-over on the list. For people brought up on bold New World reds, it’s a great introduction to Pinot Noir, but it can also work the other way, bringing Burgundy and Pinot lovers towards bolder New World fruit.’ Simon Woods, team leader
‘We struggle to sell anything over £45 from New Zealand. People who are looking at bigger money will tend to gravitate towards Burgundy.’ Oscar Miller, Vinoteca King’s Cross
‘They seemed quite expensive for what they delivered. Too much tannin and not enough fruit.’ Guillaume Mahaut, The Jugged Hare