87 pts Robert Parker Jr.'s The Wine Advocate (LPD) 10/2012 - Medium bodied with grainy tannins it has just enough red berry flavor, lively acid and a long finish.
Tasting
Notes
The 2009 Pinot Noir displays ripe, sweet plum notes with an edge of complexity on the nose. The palate is rich and round supported by fine grain tannins.
Food
Accompaniments
An excellent match for most meat dishes.
Awards,
Reviews and other Notes
87 pts Robert Parker Jr.'s The Wine Advocate (LPD) 10/2012
Ruby-purple in color, the 2009 Pinot Noir has lovely ripe cherry, red plum and red currant fruit over black pepper and underbrush. Medium bodied with grainy tannins it has just enough red berry flavor, lively acid and a long finish. Drink it now to 2014.
Sherwood Estate was started 25 years ago by Dayne and Jill Sherwood. They now have 8 vineyards covering 200 acres - 3 in Marlborough and 5 in Waipara. “Waipara has good mid-palate weight compared to Marlborough with lower cropping in general and the tannins tend to be a bit firmer,” Dayne commented during my visit in July 2011. The wines are naturally fermented using indigenous yeast. The “Heritage” range is made purely with Waipara fruit, with these wines in particular aiming at “being different from your average NZ wine”. These guys are doing a commendable job and their prices offer incredible value.
Winemaker Notes
Selected parcels of Pinot Noir from our Sandy Creek Vineyard and neighbouring blocks in Marlborough have gone in to producing our 2009 Sherwood Pinot Noir. Harvesting the fruit early April 2009 in great conditions it was transported to the winery and tipped into 5 tonne fermenters. After a six day cool soak the fermentation began on its own accord. The cap was hand plunged twice a day over the 17 day skin contact period. The wine was then pressed off skins, aged for 5 months in barrel, lightly blended, fined and bottled.
