2015 Mt Difficulty Roaring Meg Pinot Noir Central Otago 750 ml

Unique Obstacles, a “Roaring” Reward

Snow-capped mountains and pristine rivers set the backdrop for New Zealand’s Central Otago wine region, where vines rooted in silty, schist and sandy soils turn out some of the most exquisite Pinot Noirs in the world. Some time ago, I made the drive down Felton Road, the region’s famous wine route, absolutely taken by the beautiful vineyards abutting the Flat-Top mountains on one side, and winding down to the banks of the Kawarau River on the other. That trip resulted in my rediscovery of Mt. Difficulty and this 2015 Mt. Difficulty Roaring Meg Pinot Noir.

It’s elegantly structured with supple ripe fruit and is a pure expression of Central Otago. It would cost $50 or more if it came from Sonoma’s Goldridge soils, or from the limestone-infused lands of the Côte de Nuits. I loved putting Mt. Difficulty wines on the French Laundry’s discerning list, because they carried enough elegance, enough finesse that these were my go-to Southern Hemisphere Pinot Noirs for pairing with our wild game dishes. I’d highly recommend preparing roasted squab and serving it alongside this Roaring Meg Pinot. I’ve secured 125 cases offered at $22 per bottle. Shipping included on just 6.

I was determined to drop by Mt. Difficulty on my last New Zealand trip. It was roughly an hour east of my Queenstown base. But I was always happy to reserve space on The French Laundry’s wine list for them, so it was an easy decision for me to make. The drive wasn’t quite so easy.

The reason? Sheep.

My car got stuck behind a herd slowly walking down Felton Road—and then another herd popped up in back of me. This “only in New Zealand” traffic jam gave me time to think about why Central Otago is such a perfect place to grow Pinot grapes.

I pondered its terroir and climate fluctuations. Its struggle-inducing soils tend to keep Pinot grapes from getting unruly. I also began thinking of how a talented vintner like Matt Dicey (of Mt. Difficulty) can instill an even greater sense of focus from the fruit. The sheep wouldn’t move out of the way fast enough. Fortunately, Matt had a couple of glasses of Roaring Meg poured and ready when I finally arrived. After one sip the sheep-jam was nothing but a distant memory.

Dicey talked of an unusually cool November and a surprising amount of February rain, which led to a very compact 2015 harvest, putting the soil’s ability to coax precision ripening at center stage. Matt and his team destemmed most of the fruit to further bring out the grapes’ natural fruit characters, and a small hunk of the harvest reserved for whole-cluster fermentation to build structure and texture. Their scientific handiwork produces an intense yet sophisticated expression of one of New Zealand’s most stupendous regions—a bottle more than worthy of cellar space.

A densely focused expression of dark fruit guides the wine from its robust nose to its graceful finish, underscored by balanced acidity. It’s enjoyable now, but a few years to hang out in your cellar will make it abundantly clear why so many Kiwis clamor for bottles.