2016 Sherwood Estate Pinot Noir Waipara Valley

First to Pioneer Pinot Noir Grapes in the Region

An under-$15 Waipara Valley Pinot Noir with the quality of a top-notch village Volnay—what else could you want? From one of New Zealand’s oldest wineries, the first to pioneer the Pinot Noir grape in the region, comes this juicy, mouthwatering, cherry-scented red, a product of the Waipara’s unique microclimate. Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate says Sherwood Estate’s “prices offer incredible value” and we agree. At $14.99 it is brimming with freshness, mineral intensity, and lively energy—and this is the last shipment to the U.S. You won’t find it anywhere else. A jewel (and case-buy) for Pinot purists.

People told Jill and Dayne Sherwood they were out of their minds to be planting grapes in New Zealand in the 1980s. For one thing, according to Sherwood, everyone knew NZ was Cabernet Sauvignon territory—who’d ever heard of world-class Kiwi Pinot Noir? Moreover, the country’s wine industry was in turmoil, wineries going out of business left and right thanks to bumper crops and price wars. Nevertheless, the Sherwoods persisted, personally planting each Pinot Noir vine into the stony soils of their 20-acre Canterbury block in 1987—the first Pinot Noir that was ever grown in the Waipara Valley.

What the critics failed to realize was just how unique the region was, boasting just the right conditions necessary to make mouthwateringly fresh, fruit-forward Pinot Noir. The Waipara Valley sits on the South Island, about a 30-minute drive north of Christchurch. To the east, the valley is separated from Pegasus Bay by a range of hills that protect it from the chilly winds off the Pacific. To the west, New Zealand’s Southern Alps loom in the distance, ushering in the region’s hot northwest winds. Summer days are warm and dry. But a diurnal temperature of nearly 40 degrees allows for chilly nights, making this most unusual microclimate a magical place for the growing of superb Burgundian varieties.

Today Sherwood Estate is one of New Zealand’s largest, family-owned wineries, as well as one of the country’s oldest. They still do everything themselves, from harvesting, crushing, fermenting, racking, and bottling. Under winemaker Petter Evans, the estate now comprises five sustainably farmed vineyards, each contributing fruit from select parcels to this bottle. Some have called 2016 the best vintage ever in the region, dry and warm, making for wines of excellent structure and aromatics. Fruit was harvested under perfect conditions during three weeks in April and tipped into open-top fermenters. Juice was pressed and rested in oak barrels for nine months. It all adds up to a wine of superb varietal typicity and transparency that will have Pinot purists swooning.

• Fruit Intensity
• Oak Intensity
• Body
• Acidity
• Tannin

• ABV 13.00%
• Enjoy right away
• Drink Up
• % Pinot Noir
• Serving temperature – 60°
• Other