WTN: Oregon vs. NZ, two pinots

[Jenise]

2006 Wildaire pinot noir, Willamette
Medium red hue, slightly cloudy, indistinct mild berry fruit and whatever else all wrapped in a milky taste that blunts puts an annoying barrier between your taste buds and the brighter wine it should be. Have found this in other Oregon pinots before, namely a Scott Paul Le Paulee. We were too bored to finish the bottle.

For comparison, we drank:

2006 Amisfield pinot noir, Central Otago, NZ
On the first night, there was no flavor here; no nose, nothing on the palate. We left it to open up overnight, then, which is did handsomely: bright dark red raspberry fruit with spice and an interesting herb streak that at first impressed as tarragon and then segued into separate flavors of black licorice and thyme. In fact each pour tasted a little different from the last and each seemed better; excellent wine.

[David M. Bueker]

Has that milky taste ever gone away overnight?

[Jenise]

Has that milky taste ever gone away overnight?

No, not in my experience, quite the opposite. There may have been some brighter more complex flavors initially, but they're quickly overtaken and, eventually, obliterated.

Has that milky taste ever gone away overnight?

No, not in my experience, quite the opposite. There may have been some brighter more complex flavors initially, but they're quickly overtaken and, eventually, obliterated.

Is it an oak thing? This is something you have noticed in multiple vintages?

Jason

Is it an oak thing?

Jason, when I hear milky, I immediately think malolactic fermentation - gone wrong.
Cheers,
Sue

[Jenise]

Has that milky taste ever gone away overnight?

No, not in my experience, quite the opposite. There may have been some brighter more complex flavors initially, but they're quickly overtaken and, eventually, obliterated.

Is it an oak thing? This is something you have noticed in multiple vintages?

Jason

This was my first vintage with this wine, ditto the Scott Paul I refer to. The flavor was very malolactic, but there was that cloudiness (not excessive, just more so than typical). It's a deadening of flavor that occurs similarly in wines that under a bit of secondary fermentation, but there was no fizz whatsoever. It's probably just a coincidence that my only other recent experience with a problem like this was from the same little viticultural area.

Don't rule out the La Paulees completely - they can be quite good. Have you tried the 2005?

[Jenise]

Don't rule out the La Paulees completely - they can be quite good. Have you tried the 2005?

Oh, I didn't. I owned two bottles which I purchased after tasting at Scott's place there in Carlton. Trouble is, a year passed between our opening the two bottles we owned, so we couldn't be sure if the second one (that had the milky problem) was flawed or if that's just the way the wine progressed.

[Jenise]

Don't rule out the La Paulees completely - they can be quite good. Have you tried the 2005?

Oh and re the 05, yes. My problem bottle was the 05--here's the TN I posted at the time: 2005 Scott Paul Winery "La Paulee" Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
We bought two bottles of this and I remember how lovely the first bottle, consumed during The Month of Living Pinotously that followed the trip, was. Very complex in a feminine way with light fruit and a lot of tomato and leafy things. Not now. Currently the wine is bigger and simpler with a strong malolactic presence that I found unpleasant, plus a very salty midpalate and finish. I expected both to back down and reveal the wine I remember during the course of drinking it, but neither did. This is not what I hope for from pinot noir.