As most readers know, I have had a love-hate-hate-hate relationship with the pinot grape lately. Far too often I have found most value pinot’s today to be far too fruity and lacking in any resembling an enjoyable, balanced flavor.
My angst with the pinot hadn’t gotten any better this past week as I have tasted literally a dozen different Australian pinot’s – finding several to be fantastic but way outside the cork scrooge’s budget. “Value” reds in Sydney are considered to be any drinkable wine under $30.
Luckily, for those adventurous enough to engage their palate in a wide array of wines, there are so true superb values to be found. Tonight’s wine is perhaps one of my favorite super value pinot finds from our trip to Australia. Interestingly, this bottle hails from an area known far more for its superb sauvignon blancs than for its value pinots.
The 2007 Harringbone Hills Pinot Noir from the Marlborough region of New Zealand is a fantastically earthy wine with wonderful mellow hints of cherry and light pepper rounding out each glass.
For $14, this wine is fantastically light, and will please just about everyone as a superb value, every day wine. Whether you are a high end pinot connoisseur or a neophyte to the grape, the 2008 Herringbone Hills is a refreshingly smooth glass of wine.
The folks at Herringbone are beginning to gain notoriety and several US wine merchants now stock the pinot noir. Enjoy!
The Cork Scrooge 
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