2006 Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 3

Big, sweet and powerful with a rather candied nose. Strong dried herbs note. Quite marked acidity but a very slight hole on the back palate compared with the 2007. Not the mellifluous nature of the 2007 – I do see a parallel with 2006 burgundy! (JR)

The 2006 Block 3 Pinot Noir vanquished all opposition at a comprehensive blind comparison of Central Otago Pinot Noirs. A bewitching nose of red cherry, raspberry, lavender and honey, the palate is blessed with a natural sense of balance and elegance, building towards a crescendo of vibrant red-berried fruits on the finish that has great delineation and poise. A bottle should be delivered on every doorstep in the Cote d’Or! Feted as one of New Zealand’s best producers and justifiably so, in my opinion, for time and time again Felton Road’s wines triumph against all-comers. Located in Bannockburn, Central Otago, its vineyards nestle on a gentle north-facing slope between 200m and 335m and overshadowed by 2,000m mountains, their micro-climate benefits from low humidity, wide diurnal temperature variation and high sunshine hours. Although not yet certified, winemaker Blair Walter told me that they apply biodynamics to all the vineyards and benefit from a three-tier, gravity-flow winery and use wild yeasts as standard. I tasted their current portfolio at the winery with many turning up in blind tastings, as well as a comprehensive Block 3 vertical that will appear separately. The Pinots usually include some whole bunches depending upon the vintage, fermented in small open-top vessels and matured in oak of which around 30% is new. They mature for between 12 and 18 months and are bottled without fining or filtering. “Calvert” is a joint-venture with the fruit shared by Pyramid Valley Estate and Craggy Range Importer: Wilson Daniels Ltd, St. Helena, CA; tel. (707) 963-9661, fax: (707) 963-8566

Good dark red. Dark cherry, bitter chocolate and allspice on the perfumed nose; smells like a Dujac wine. Densely packed, broad and deep; lush yet airy pinot without any undue weight. The red and darker fruit flavors are complemented by a deep smokiness and sexy brown spices. A wonderfully rich, complex New Zealand pinot with a very suave, long finish.