After returning from Australia recently, I am on a bit of a mission to try Pinot from all the different Pinot growing regions of New Zealand and Australia. We had this last night with home ground hamburgers, a great pairing of good cheap food and excellent wine.
While obviously a 'new world' Pinot, this is not a fruit bomb. The tannins were almost a little too tight out of the bottle, but opened up very nicely after a little while in the glass (and the wine in the bottle continued to open up). This is a Pinot that can definitely stand up to rich food, it would go great with a deeply seared prime steak. It has the structure to benefit from a few more years in the cellar, though it is wonderful now.
The nose is worth savoring, earthy floral and fruit notes. The flavor also has good fruit, but intense - more dried cherry than fresh, almost a dried cherry that had been soaked in a Manhattan.
Overall a wine to seek out again.