Vavasour Awatere Valley Pinot Noir 2009: Lovely cherry, plum nose; lively raspberry, cherry, strawberry, plum on the palate; some spice, tobacco, vanilla-oak; frisky, concentrated flavors with easy-going tannin and good acidity make for a balanced, fun drinker. The Awatere is a sub-region of New Zealand’s Marlborough wine country (northern part of the south island) noted for huge boulders randomly flung into its gravely, silty soil; it is rough-hewn country shielded by mountains looming to the northwest, cooled by the nearby Clifford Bay and Pacific to the east. Awatere wines reflect this wildness and are noted for their aromatics, ripeness, concentration, and edginess. This effort reflects the ascendence of New Zealand pinot noir on world stage. $20
