True, the wines certainly are different from those in Burgundy and I’ve heard the same complaints. But for better or worse, all of the Pinot Noir wines made in the world are compared to Burgundy just as Riesling grown the world-over is compared to those of Germany. the benchmarks will always be a reference point.
Cheers,
Bill
BTW: The Umlaut question - write Spaetburgunder - it reads and spells the same as Spätburgunder and even a German guy like me have nothing to worry about. 
ä = ae, Spaetburgunder instead of Spätburgunder
Ü = ue, Uerziger Wuerzgarten instead of Ürziger Würzgarten
ö = oe, Hoellberg instead of Höllberg
Juergen (I add the E out of respect) –
The problem is that most English-speakers don’t know those rules and most diacritical marks simply get dropped by us (not just umlauts, but accents). Hence, when you add in the E’s most English-speakers think it’s a typo.
We’re committed to mangling all foreign languages. We got rid of cases, genders and grammatical inflections, and we resist any funny marks over letters!
If it’s any consolation, I was laughed at by English friends when I pronounced Beauchamp Place as the French would. It turns out, Londoners pronounce it Beech-um. So, you see, there’s no hope for your umlauts. But we abuse the French even more badly.
Few reach Australia sadly.
I’ve been really enjoying a big screwcapped 1L bottle of the 2016 Messmer Spatburgunder [Pfalz] a dry red over the last 3 days. My limited experience with German/Swiss/Austrian reds has been a glass or so while traveling in those areas over the years (and universal disappointment no matter what the somm or bartender says) so I was happily surprised by this. (Experiences back in Freedomland never were much different either) Global climate change may have made some of those red wine areas acceptable to someone (like moi!) who is acclimated to fruity/rich RRV pinot. Now to be fair…this is still a AFWE lean/zippy style of pinot…and you’ll see from the picture how pale it is. But for a lunchtime style of pinot/burg/red this does fit the bill. The nose is all cranberry and a racy palate, with crisp acidity, but its manageable without food, and has a 20 second or so finish. It’s not huge, but tres avaler. This Messmer pinot is a very pleasant surprise, and if you like a lighter genre, it’s a midweek quaffer than can be left open in the fridge for a few days. FWIW I did not pick up any refermentation/VA/flaws. A B+ for my palate, and I’d repurchase if it was in my area. Sort of like villages bojo to me.
It’s on the pale side, but don’t read too much into that.
