Wild Earth “Blind Trail” 2006 Pinot Noir (Central Otago) – Less whole than a previous bottle, showing dense beet and berry with mushroom soda, then a soft sine wave of cherried acidity, and then a deep basso throb of dark earth on the finish. And yet, it doesn’t quite come together; despite its apparent construction as an early-drinking wine, it seems to be closing rather than falling apart. Still, it’s a good, regionally-true introduction to one version of the Central Otago style. A second bottle is identical. (11/08)

Wild Earth “Blind Trail” 2006 Pinot Noir (Central Otago) – There’s no way a Central Otago pinot at this low price point can be any good. And yet, it is. What voodoo are they working? The usual dark, slightly charred and heavy plum, beet, and blood orange fruit is buoyed by fresh acidity but an otherwise complete absence of structure. It’s drinkable now, it won’t be drinkable very long from now, but it’s certainly quite representative of the Otago terroir. How in the hell did they do this? Was Sam Neill, who played the Antichrist and makes wine in the Central Otago, involved? (A: no, he was not. But Michelle Richardson, who’s as much of a winemaking star as star-abhorring New Zealand can generate, was…at least when this wine was made. She’s since moved on.) (6/08)