When one thinks of wine from New Zealand, sauvignon blanc is typically the first wine that comes to mind. I’ll raise my hand and say that I too am guilty of ignoring New Zealand wines, other than sauvignon blanc. But there’s no reason for this. They produce plenty of other great wines. But I guess the sauvignon blanc is just so tasty that it overshadows the others. Well, I have to tell you, if I keep tasting pinot noir like this out of New Zealand the sauvignon blanc will be the one in the shadows.
The Stoneleigh pinot noir comes from vineyards in the northern side of the Wairau valley in the Marlborough wine region of New Zealand. The area where this wine is produced is covered with smooth stones, which the producers call “sunstones.” These stones reflect the sun’s heat onto the grapes, which is said to help ripening.
The wine was matured in French barriques, which add a nice spicy characteristic to the wine.
I really dig this pinot noir. The nose is beautiful, with a lot of spice which I would describe as a combination of nutmeg and rose petals. It also has plenty of cherry and rasperry on the nose. The palate is really nice too, with plenty of cherry and raspberry flavors, a bit of spice, good acidity and a nice mouth feel. But best of all this wine has drikability, which is arguably the most important quality for a wine to have.
Wine: Stoneleigh
Variety: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 14%
Rating: 87
Price: $15.00
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Want another opinion? Here’s what some other folks thought of the 2009 Stoneleigh pinot noir:
Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.