Wine Review - 2011 Terra Romana Pinot Noir: First We Went To Georgia Now We Are Off To Romania

In an interest twist of fate, we picked up this Romanian wine.  That's right Romanian wine on a trip to our province next door, New Brunswick. In an Alcool NB Liquor store we found a bunch of cool non-traditional wine country wines.  Greece and Austria were among the choices. This particular wine had a vinifera grape variety on the label and was $12.49 so we snapped it up.

In a repeat of our recent Georgian wine review, the Oaks of Romania will be in the same Pool as Canada in the 2015 Rugby World Cup so the intrigue went up a notch.

We poured a glass of the wine and immediately we knew we weren't going to be disappointed at our choice as it looked like pure Pinot Noir.  Light, thin, and watery.  The heartbreak grape looks to be a winner with cool climate Romanian Pinot Noir.  It is worth trying.

The nose is full of plums and cocoa nibs, sharp little bits of raw cocoa.  Once you gets passed that it transitions into a bit of wood and just a touch of heat from the alcohol.  There is a bit of that barn floor that we like on many wines.  It is complex, familiar, and we like it.  Solid Pinot Noir nose.

As a Pinot Noir this wine actually walks the best of two worlds....well three.  It is pure cool climate Pinot Noir reminiscent of Pinots we make here in Canada, we are thinking of Niagara wines mainly.  That said, there are notes of what also makes a great New Zealand Pinot Noir and that we definitely love.  On top of all of that it is European so there is a touch of France in there as well.  All the nice things in the nose transfer nicely to the palate.  It is a dry version of strawberry Jolly Ranchers.  Tart and smooth with a nice amount of soft tannins.  Again, hitting the high points of all the regions we mentioned, delicious.

	Tasting Notes:	Score:
Sight (0-5)	Very light and watery with the typical Pinot Noir thinness.	4.0
Smell (0-5)	Plums and cocoa nibs transitioned into wood and barn floor.	4.5
Taste (0-10)	Really great Pinot Noir flavours like a dry version of strawberry Jolly Ranchers.  Tart and smooth with soft tannins.	8.25
	Total:	16.75 / 20 (83.75%)

At $12.49 in New Brunswick the QPR on this wine is off the charts.  So, once again if you can find this wine give it a try.  Another small European country with a great wine industry hits us in the right spot.

Keep on tasting!

Chris & Shannon