One of our local fancy grocery stores does a periodic 25% off sales on their wine, and they have a pretty good wine section. At their last sale, I picked up a variety of their New Zealand wines to try. The Sherwood Estate was a moderately priced Pinot Noir and we drank it the other night. In my wine rating scale, this would be Drinkable. There is nothing objectionable about the wine, its defining characteristic is probably a generic mix of Pinot Noir fruit flavors - plum and some darker berries. There is not much tannic structure (if any), the fruit flavors are not that complex, and I did not pick up any earthy or smoky overtones. This was enjoyable to drink on its own, but not a Pinot I would pair with rich food or red meat. When people suggest pairing Pinot with fish, this is probably the style they intend.
One of our local fancy grocery stores does a periodic 25% off sales on their wine, and they have a pretty good wine section. At their last sale, I picked up a variety of their New Zealand wines to try. The Sherwood Estate was a moderately priced Pinot Noir and we drank it the other night. In my wine rating scale, this would be Drinkable. There is nothing objectionable about the wine, its defining characteristic is probably a generic mix of Pinot Noir fruit flavors - plum and some darker berries. There is not much tannic structure (if any), the fruit flavors are not that complex, and I did not pick up any earthy or smoky overtones. This was enjoyable to drink on its own, but not a Pinot I would pair with rich food or red meat. When people suggest pairing Pinot with fish, this is probably the style they intend.