West Cape Howe 2017 Pinot Noir

A couple bottles of this ended up on the bench. From whence they came, we are not sure but it was a wine day and so, we popped the lid and decided to have a little look see.

From Mt Barker in the far south west of WA, that tip right on the bottom of the state well south of Perth, comes this interesting 2017 Pinot Noir. Our palates, to be fair, are more attuned to traditional Pinot styles from places like the Yarra Valley, Bellarine or Mornington. What we have here is a bright, light and textural pinot which clearly benefits from its maritime climate.

The nose is reasonably good with plum, cherry and smoky, almost peaty notes to it. Not insipid but not punchy. It's a more elegant, restrained nose. We have lamb backstraps on the grill so we know it's going to be a fine match.

After of bit of poncing about with swirling and sniffing, time to get it in the gob. There are more of the ripe fruits and smoky notes, with some clove and spice notes. Again, the palate went searching for something more punchy. What we found were some nice grippy tannins and a lovely acidity. The mid palate is full, structured and has complexity and texture, with hints of oak. Nicely weighted without being overwhelming at all.

Easy enough to drink for a midweek lamb dinner and we will give the second bottle a bit more time to see where it ends up.

RRP - around $22 for a 2018 if you can find it

https://www.westcapehowewines.com.au/

WA | 2017 | Mt Barker | 14.5% ABV