Wine Review - 2011 The Ned Marlborough Pinot Noir: We Are Down A Woman But Pulling Through

So, wine blogging without Shannon is like playing in the big game with your star running back on the sidelines with a strained hammie.  Not a perfect situation by any means but you dig deep and play on.

This wine was a purchase at the 2012 Port of Wines Festival where it stood out from the crowd with what we felt were strong flavours for Pinot Noir.  Well, there was some truth to that and some false memories.  The Ned from Marlborough is a nice version of Kiwi Pinot but there are some shortcomings.

In the glass it is a fairly standard looking New Zealand Pinot which a light and clear colour profile with a thin structure.  Call it cranberry juice/strawberry kool-aid coloured maybe even a watery looking wine.  It is not unlike many that we have had from Marlborough so this has a similar visual.  It is a pale wine overall which screams cool climate Pinot.

The nose is definitely Kiwi Pinot with loads of cherries and other berries.  The label says violets and we can see that but there is a tannic undertone that really lights up the smell.  We like it and it sets high expectations for the taste.

Which brings us, you guessed it, to the taste....

So, the memory of this wine was it was a stand out at the wine show which made it a purchase-worthy selection.  That said, we are six-plus months out from that and this re-taste made for a contentious discussion.  The nose as we said was good but the flavours don't quite match up for one very important period....the mid-palate.  The wine starts fine with bright berries notes and then transitions into a tart start to the mid-palate and then that tartness turns sharply into bitterness half-way through which stands out as an overwhelming taste.  The finish lingers and lingers and lingers.

	Tasting Notes:	Score:
Sight (0-5)	Light looking Pinot Noir with cranberry tones and watery texture. Typical Kiwi Pinot.	4.0
Smell (0-5)	Solid nose of cherries and berries with tannins underlying the whole smelling experience.	4.25
Taste (0-10)	Bitter mid-palate takes away from what is yet again a typical Kiwi Pinot Noir with berries and a very long finish.	7.5
	Total:	15.75 / 20 (78.75%)

At $20 locally, there is no surprise on the price point but with that mid-palate it works up against that value.  It stood out at the wine show but that could have been due to that bitterness being mistaken for flavour when tired tastebuds were engaged.  There is no regret behind the purchase but there are so many other Pinot Noir's that stand out it makes this one tough to recommend as a buy.

Keep on tasting!

Chris & Shannon