Blue Pyrenees Rose 2001, Framingham Pinot Noir 2006

Blue Pyrenees Rose 2001 (Pyrenees, Vic)
Diam, $28

Another diam cork and yet again another painful thing to open. Memo Diam – Your sparkling corks aren’t particularly user friendly. I’ll forgive you purely on the basis of a mutual dislike for cork taint.

Anyway, this is a very light blush colour – Its lightly pink/light orange in colour. On the nose it is properly yeasty and showing some clear bottle age characters & a whiff of autolysis. No obvious fruit to speak of, the nose is slightly fragrant & more reminiscent of Champagne than Australian Sparkling. Pity it doesn’t transfer to the palate, which starts with stalky fruit and ends in biting, citrussy acidity, the acidity gobbling up any palate generosity and turning this into one hard drink. I can still taste it 3 minutes later, the acidity is very fresh, but unmistakeably that of unripe grapes. Sad to see after the promise of the nose. 15

Framingham Marlborough Pinot Noir 2006 (Marlborough, NZ)
Screwcap, $25

It’s been a while since a Framingham has passed my way, but I have always been a fan of their Rieslings (lovely) and been regularly impressed by the Savvy. They are first and foremost a producer of aromatic whites and as the website proclaims, the Pinot Noir is more of a complement to the range – as this wine clearly shows.

Toasty oak is the first element that escapes on the nose, followed by red cherry & a little musk. It is a light, volatile and slightly stewed nose of limited appeal. The palate is better, with a warm heart of blocky, fully ripe red cherry fruit that comes through in a simple vanilla edged rush. The finish is just the faintest bit green, but there lies potential for improvement with some bottle age.
Given another 12 months in bottle this wines score may improve, but for the moment this seems strained and a little clumsy. 15.5