WTN: 3 Pinot's (Burgundy, Austria, New Zeeland)

Last weekend, we gathered for a small Pinot Noir-tasting, focusing on differences/similarities between Burgundy, Austria and New Zeeland.

Taylors Pass Pinot Noir 2004 (Villa Maria Estate, New Zeeland)
The nose is very Marlborough-esque: barnyard, raw /smoked meat and marshland combined with some floral notes (no strawberry-jam, good!). The palate is kind of elegant with red citrus and nice high levels of acidity, highest of the tested wines actually (this surprises me!). What kind of ruins this wine for me is too much toasted oak. Nice enough, but nothing I would buy again at this price (about $40).

Vosne-Romanée Clos de la Fontaine Monopole 2002 (Domaine A-F Gros)
Nose of violets and some vanilla, some charming Pinot-perfume. Still no signs of aging, very youthful, and slightly simple. The palate is elegant and quite light, carries liquorice-root and some chalk. Quite tannic, best with some food. I'm a little perplexed with this wine. According to the producer, this should be consumed young. I wonder if it's already too old (or still too young?), because to me this is kind of simple/un-complex for a mid-price Burgundy (about $50). Nice wine, sure, but it's not very thought-provoking or inspiring.

Schloss Halbturn Pinot Noir 2004 (Austria)
For me this was the surprise of the evening, but then again, this is my first Austrian red. The colour is darker than the two previous wines. When I put the glass to my nose, I am attacked by an armada of savage scents: Wool, barnyard, wet dog, smokey oak. Almost no perfume or elegance is present, which is too bad (and surprising to me), this wild beast needs beauty to become balanced and interesting. The palate is similar to the nose; kind of burned, almost some nuances of tar in it, feels very "brown" (it aromas had colors, that is). I have one more bottle, and I don't intend to open it sometime soon, I think it needs time to cool down. (Price: about $45)

Interesting tasting, but none of the wines really made a lasting impression on me. Stylewise, the two European wines were very different from each other, with the Villa Maria effort somewhere in between.

[David M. Bueker]

Thanks for the data points. I've had several Austrian reds that impressed me, but unfortunately the most impressive thing is usually the price.

Hello Holger!

I think some Burgundy 2002's are in a closed fase now, so it migth open up in a few years. I have this wine in my cellar and I have put "2009-2014" in the drinking window. But I am not sure, cause I have not tried this wine or producer before.

I've had some excellent wines from A-F Gros in the past. I suspect it needs 5 years or so.

-Paul W.

Thanks guys for that info on the Vosne-Romanée. I have one more bottle, but will keep my hands off it for several years. I was just confused by the info on the producers homepage (http://www.af-gros.com/vosne1.htm), "Perfect to consume young with red meats." But at the moment, it's probably too old to be considered young, and too young to be considered mature...
And yes David, Austrian wines tend to be on the expensive side (and luckily, very often, they're worth it, at least some of the Rieslings I've had).