Australian Pinot Noir

The McPherson MWC wines were shared with a collection of wine writers in a Twitter-based tasting session.  Winemaker Jo Nash was on hand to give us all the information we craved. She celebrated her fifth year as the head of the cellar at McPherson in 2016.  She’s also married to a winemaker and they have a brood of grape-stomping kids at home.

Andrew McPherson's family started the wine business in 1968 in New South Wales. In 2000, he found some land he liked near Nagambie in central Victoria and that’s where the winery is today.
Victoria is the Australian state in the extreme southeastern part of the land mass, just north of Bass Strait from Tasmania. This location results in a cooler expression than you may be used to with Australian wine.

Their Sinclair Vineyard, along the Goulburn River sits next to the winery. The Croftwood Vineyard is in the huge Murray Darling region.

The MWC line was introduced two years ago and is just now making its breakthrough in the U.S. They call the wines "rustic" and say they are, "soft, savoury, earthy styles with a European influence."

The MWC Pinot Noir 2014 is 100% Pinot Noir and has alcohol at 14% with a retail price of about 20 bucks. This wine is medium-dark and aromatic. It smells a bit of raspberry, but cherry notes and strawberry come through, unusual for a Pinot Noir. It's ripe on the tongue, too. Rich, juicy cherry and a slightly dark, slightly tart mouthfeel deliver a fairly solid experience. While it won't knock a Russian River Valley or Sta. Rita Hills Pinot off the top shelf, it can stand on its own with most other California Pinots.

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