Mumm Central Otago Pinot Noir 2021 

Here we have Mumm’s foray into the world of still wine. The fruit comes from the Lowburn sub-region of Central Otago. Matured for 16 months in French oak. Pops of sweet ripe dark cherry, raspberry, red plum and cranberry meld with earth, vanilla and mocha straight off in an open knit aromatic profile. Some liquorice root and dried cherry notes thereafter. The palate is sweet fruited, meaty, and fulsome, coating the mouth with ripe red plum, ripe raspberry, sarsaparilla, dark chocolate and earth before a good lick of chewy tannins frame the fruit to a finish of solid mocha-laced length. At 14.5% alcohol, we’re not in the delicate, ethereal realm. There’s some grunt here that calls out for food, and plum duck will do the trick.