Wine: What the experts think of Australian Pinot Noir varieties

We all know about "Brand Australia". Who hasn't drunk - or even been drunk on - Jacob's Creek? Australia has built its name on the consistent quality of its high-volume brands, making it the biggest success story in modern wine times. Yes, some of the wines are overripe and high in alcohol, moan critics. But it's the wines' soft, friendly, fruit-driven style that got them noticed in the first place.

The British public have certainly given Australian wine the thumbs-up, even pushing France off its number-one slot a couple of years back - no mean feat, considering France is the largest wine producer in the world, accounting for 21% of the world's production, while Australia produces less than 4%. Even in the on-trade, Australia is fast catching up on France's long-term lead.

But what lies beyond the multi-state blend? The top 20 companies produce more than 90% of Australia's wine, with the so-called Big Five accounting for more than three-quarters of Australia's total wine production. But things are changing fast. In 1970, there were only 160 wineries across Australia; now there are more than 1,800, with new regions being pioneered across the country.

In existing regions, from established wineries, quality is improving all the time, with constant experimentation reviving neglected grape varieties and trying out new clones. And one of the most talked-about grape varieties in Australia in recent years is Pinot Noir. It has been grown in Australia since the very beginning, everywhere from the Hunter
Valley to Tasmania, but has gathered pace in the quest for cool-climate winemaking.

The more winemakers experiment with it, the more interesting the wines become. But did a Caterer panel agree?

The venue
Dine at the Greyhound in Battersea, south London, and you're likely to be surrounded by members of the wine trade. Owner Mark van der Goot used to be a sommelier, at the Greenhouse in Mayfair, where he made his name with its well-sourced list. Now he's going it alone, his wine list is even more exciting - he has 550 wines, with 20 available by the glass, plus a wine club with 250 members, and modest mark-ups - anything more than £35 has a flat £20 mark-up on each bottle.

There are gems from all over the globe. Right now he's excited about the USA, particularly wines from Edna Valley and Russian River, but there's also a large section from Australia, with a whole page devoted to Australian Shiraz. But then, van der Goot is Australian - the perfect host for our tasting.

What we thought We blasted through 15 wines, all tasted blind, with just a handful hitting the high notes, and only one outright winner - Seville Estate. None of us was familiar with the Yarra Valley winery, so I rang its UK distributor, Liberty Wines, to find out more. "It's a tiny estate," explained Liberty's Pippa Askham. "They make Pinot Gris, too, but Pinot Noir is their thing." Predictably, there's not much of it to go around, so how did the rest of the line-up fare?

"Overall," confessed Thal, "it's what I expected - one or two I liked, but most of them I didn't like, though I'm tough to please. I don't list any Australian Pinot Noir and this tasting confirmed why I don't. I found what I always find - lots of baked flavours. I love the elusive aromatic quality of Pinot Noir, and I don't get that with Aussie Pinot Noir. The wines are clumsy and have no complexity, and are very over-extracted. Grosset is the only one I like, and it wasn't in the line-up."

Over to influential wine buyer and head sommelier Ronan Sayburn at the Gordon Ramsay Restaurant. "I've just got back from Central Otago, in New Zealand, so I've been very spoilt," he said. "There was a lot of variety, and different styles, but in general I wasn't really that impressed. It's so easy to let Pinot get earthy and vegetal, and lose its fruit mid-palate. Only a couple really did it for me."

However, Sayburn gave a whopping 17 marks out of 20 to the Coldstream Hills Yarra Valley Pinot Noir (£6.85, FGL Wine Estates, 020 8843 8400), while everyone else gave it middling to mingy marks. Plus, he gave his second-highest score to Fonty's Pool, which fared well in the line-up, winning two stars. "They're not planting the right clones, and they're not mixing it up - they should be doing anything to add complexity," grumbled Sayburn. "There was some over-oaking going on, too - they need to get more balance."

Joëlle Marti-Baron agreed, and added: "I hate unbalanced wines. I can deal with over-extraction, but some of these were just too cabbagey, and very unbalanced on the palate. There were some very different styles. While there were some surprises, I think some of them should give up making Pinot Noir altogether - it's like dressing a rugby player in an evening gown. Australia doesn't have the ideal climate for making Pinot Noir and it's a very difficult grape to produce good wines."

Was Charlie Young more positive? Sadly, no. "There was a definite lack of complexity and a couple that were completely OTT in extraction, and some jarring wood flavours," he said. "There was quite a variety of styles and quality. While some were pretty good, there were others that I never want to try again. I'm glad the Seville Estate did well - I've already got that on my list."

So what would Paul Henry have to say? After all, it's his job to promote Australian wine in the UK. "I think this line-up is pretty convincing proof that Pinot Noir in Australia is still a work in progress," he concluded, candidly. "Viticulturally speaking, I'm tempted to say they should be planting denser, cropping thinner and picking earlier - but I think people are already beginning to do that. I think Australia has to find an expression of the variety that it feels comfortable with, rather than pursuing the Holy Grail that's Burgundy."

This left our token Australian taster, Mark van der Goot, with the last word. "I don't think they're trying to be French," he said. "There were a lot of different styles there but, you know, they're all New World styles. Yes, there were too many over-extracted wines - I wouldn't like to see these in two years' time. But they are female punter-friendly, with loads of sweet fruit - you don't have to think about them too much. You know what I mean," he added hurriedly. "They're great wines to sell in pubs - the fruit is easy and upfront, and they don't need food."

The tasters

• Paul Henry, manager, Wine Australia (PH)
• Mark van der Goot, proprietor, the Greyhound, Battersea, London (MvdG)
• Kate Thal, restaurant wine consultant, and proprietor of Green and Blue Wines, London (KT)
• Charlie Young, co-proprietor, Vinoteca, London (CY)
• Joëlle Marti-Baron, wine director, Great Eastern hotel, London (JMB)
• Ronan Sayburn, wine buyer and head sommelier, Gordon Ramsay Holdings (RS)
• Fiona Sims, freelance food and wine writer (FS)

Caterer ratings

* Knockout

2003 Seville Estate Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley (£9.83, Liberty Wines, 020 7720 5350)

"Sweet, ripe, raspberry nose, with crisp acidity and chunky damp earth flavours on the finish" - RS.

Must-have

2003 Stonier Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula (£9.21, Bibendum, 020 7449 4000)

"Juicy raspberry and redcurrant fruit, with silky tannins and cinnamon kick on finish" - FS.

2002 Piper's Brook Pinot Noir, Tasmania (£10.25, Capricorn Wines, 0161-908 1300)

"Complex, coffee and fragrant fruit nose; well-balanced, dry finish" - CY.

2003 Fonty's Pool Pinot Noir, Pemberton (£6.50, Boutinot, 0161-908 1300)

"Smoky roasted pepper fruit, good acidity and good length" - RS.

*\ Good glugger**

2004 Trentham Estate Pinot Noir, South Eastern Australia (£6.25, Tanners Wines, 01743 234500)

"Intense fruit; sweet, ripe palate; a little heavy on the oak" - RS.

2003 Yering Station Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley (£8.69, Enotria Winecellars, 020 8963 4820)

"Good, rounded texture; cherry fruit; woody and quite rich" - PH.

2004 De Bortoli Windy Peak Pinot Noir, Pemberton (£5.95, De Bortoli, 01725 516467)

"Bramble and bitter chocolate; herbaceous edge; bit stalky" - MvdG.

2001 Bests Pinot Noir, Concongella Vineyard, Grampians (£8.25, Stevens Garnier, 01865 263300)

"Not-too-subtle nose and palate, though giving way to nice balance and definition" - CY.

1998 Tyrrell's Vat 6 Pinot Noir, Hunter Valley (£12.52, Paragon Vintners, 020 7887 1807)

"Good fruit concentration; macerated cherry and bitter chocolate; but rather weird, slightly oxidised style" - JMB.

All prices are quoted per bottle excluding VAT. All the wines were tasted blind.