Felton Road ‘Calvert’ Pinot Noir 2006 (18.5/20), bright, light ruby red with lighter garnet
edge to the colour, this was beautifully soft and elegant on nose with intense
red berry fruits and floral notes The
palate was still tight, but an ethereal elegance pervaded. Soft red fruit flavours, good fresh acidity
along with good tannin depth and a long finish completed this wine. RC Nov 09
Cromwell / Bannockburn district,New Zealand:13.5%;$55[
screwcap; hand-picked; 24% whole-bunch fermentation, 8 days cold
soak; 11 months in French oak c. 33% new; dry extract 29.2 g/L;
winemaker Blair Walter considers the 2006s: 'perfumed and elegant
wines with a wonderful natural balance' though not as intense as some
years;]
Pinot
noir ruby, one of the lightest, but older than the 2005 Rousseaus.
Initially opened, there was a hint of congestion on this, needing
decanting / swirling. It clears to a fragrant, almost perfumed (+ve)
bouquet, in the sense of buddleia rather than boronia. Palate is
clean and crisp pinot noir, much leaner than the Craggy presentation,
as if some stalks had been retained [confirmed], yet still showing
sweet pinot redfruits. The whole style is reminiscent of Domaine Dujac
in the 1980s, fragrant, but lean. Dujac then used more stems than
most of his contemporaries, an approach yielding what one might call
classic fragant lighter burgundies – wines out of synch with the new
world obsession with fully ripe to over-ripe bigger wines. Vis-à-vis
the question posed in the Craggy review therefore, the reciprocal
question here is, will those retained stems make the Felton wine
ultimately the long-distance runner, in time overtaking the Craggy ?
It is great we have pinot makers pursuing both approaches to
vinification. Worth cellaring some of each, to check, I think.
Cellar 3 – 8 years. GK 11/08
Source: www.geoffkellywinereviews.co.nz
Felton Road ‘Calvert’ Central
Otago Pinot Noir 2006
11 months in French oak.
Even ruby red colour, lighter, but still youthful in appearance. Full, but gentle and soft aromas, complex
aromatics of florals, some whole bunch characters. Quite lush and juicy on palate, the flavours
are of florals with complex game and forest nuances. The palate has a crisp relief from the
acidity and the tannins seem a little more prominent too. My score 18.5-/20RC Nov 07