From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

New Zealand wine is largely produced in ten major wine growing regions spanning latitudes 36° to 45° South and extending 1,600 km (1,000 miles). They are, from north to south Northland, Auckland, Waikato/Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, Wellington, Nelson, Marlborough, Canterbury and Central Otago.

First Steps

In the 1970s, Montana in Marlborough started producing wines which were labelled by year of production (vintage) and grape variety (in the style of wine producers in Australia). The first production of a Sauvignon Blanc of great note appears to have occurred in 1977. Also produced in that year were superior quality wines of Muller Thurgau, Riesling and Pinotage.

New Zealand is home to what many wine critics consider the world’s best Sauvignon Blanc. Oz Clarke, a well known British wine critic wrote in the 1990s that New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc was “arguably the best in the world” (Rachman).

Wine regions are mostly located in free draining alluvial valleys (Hawke’s Bay, Martinborough, Nelson, the Wairau and Awatere valleys of Marlborough, and Canterbury) with notable exceptions (Waiheke Island, Kawarau Gorge in Central Otago). The alluvial deposits are typically the local sandstone called greywacke, which makes up much of the mountainous spine of New Zealand. Sometimes the alluvial nature of the soil is important, as in Hawke’s Bay where the deposits known as the Gimblett Gravels represent such quality characteristics that they are often mentioned on the wine label.

The climate in New Zealand is maritime, meaning that the sea moderates the weather producing cooler summers and milder winters than would be expected at similar latitudes in Europe and North America. Maritime climates tend also to demonstrate higher variability with cold snaps possible at any time of the year and warm periods even in the depth of winter.

Varieties, Styles and Directions

Red Blends and Bordeaux Varieties

New Zealand Reds are typically made from either a blend of varietals (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and much less often Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec), or pinot noir. Recently, in Hawkes Bay there have been wines made from Syrah, either solely or blends, and even Tempranillo, Montepulciano and Sangiovese.

Early success in the 1980s in the North Island lead to red wine planting and production concentrating on Cabernet Sauvignon by Corbans, McWilliams and Mission Estate among others. Very often it was found that vegetal characteristics predominated as Cabernet Sauvignon struggled to ripen in New Zealand conditions. Mediocre wines were often accused of being “stalky”. As viticulture improved with experience of New Zealand’s “cool climate” conditions and more Merlot and other blending wines were employed, this fault was increasingly eliminated. This trend continues and can be seen in the NZ Wine Institute statistics where hectares planted of Cabernet Sauvignon declined in the period 2003 to 2005, from 741 to 678, while Merlot increased from 1,249 to 1,592.

Typically “bordeaux blends” come from regions and sub-regions that are relatively hot and dry for New Zealand, such as Waiheke Island and Hawke’s Bay. Wines that have made a name for Waiheke Island include Stonyridge Larose and Goldwater Estate. Wines that typify the best of Hawkes Bay include Te Mata Estate’s Coleraine and Awatea, Esk Valley’s The Terraces and Villa Maria’s Reserve Merlot/Cabernets. In Marlborough there are a number of producers of bordeaux varietal wines.

However, examples of bordeaux blends can be found as far south as Waipara, in Canterbury where Pegasus Bay’s Maestro has demonstrated the recent decade’s drift away from Cabernet Sauvignon predominant blends to Merlot predominant with the addition of Malbec.

As with white wine, no distinctive regional characteristics have developed in New Zealand, the principal differences between wines being determined by the vintage, vineyard and wine-maker’s philosophy. New Zealand red wine tends to be forward and early maturing, fruit-driven and with restrained oak. The best examples have refined acids and tannins which allow moderate to long aging in the bottle.

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is a grape variety whose importance in New Zealand is greater than the weight of planting. Early in the modern wine industry (late 1970s early 1980s), the comparatively low annual sunshine hours to be found in NZ discouraged the planting of red varieties. But even at this time great hopes were had for Pinot Noir (see Romeo Bragato). Initial results were not promising for several reasons, including the mistaken planting of Gamay and the limited number of Pinot Noir clones available for planting. However in recent years Pinot Noir from Central Otago has won numerous international awards and accolations making it one of New Zealand’s most sought-after varieties.

One notable exception was the St Helena 1984 Pinot Noir from the Canterbury region. This led to the belief for a time that Canterbury might become the natural home for Pinot Noir in New Zealand. While the early excitement passed, the Canterbury region has witnessed the development of Pinot Noir as the dominant red variety. The sub-region Waipara has some interesting wines. Producers include Pegasus Bay, Waipara Springs and Omihi Hills.

The next region to excel with Pinot Noir was Martinborough on the southern end of the North Island. Several vineyards including Palliser Estate, Martinborough Vineyards, Murdoch James Estate and Ata Rangi consistently produced interesting and increasingly complex wine from Pinot Noir at the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s.

At around this time the first plantings of Pinot Noir in Central Otago occurred in the Kawarau Gorge. Central Otago had a long (for New Zealand) history as a producer of quality stone fruit and particularly cherries. Significantly further south than all other wine regions in New Zealand, it had been overlooked despite a long history of grape growing. However, it benefited from being surrounded by mountain ranges which increased its temperature variations both between seasons and between night and day making the climate unusual in the typically maritime conditions in New Zealand.

The first vines were planted using holes blasted out of the north facing schist slopes of the region, creating difficult, highly marginal conditions. The first results coming in the mid to late 1990s excited the interest of British wine commentators, including Jancis Robinson and Oz Clarke. Not only did the wines have the distinctive acidity and abundant fruit of New Zealand wines, but they demonstrated a great deal of complexity, with aromas and flavours not common in New Zealand wine and normally associated with burgundian wine. Producers include Felton Rd, Chard Farm and Mt Difficulty.

The latest sub-region appears to be Waitaki, on the border between Otago and Canterbury.

A recent blind tasting of New Zealand Pinot Noir featured in Cuisine magazine (issue 119), Michael Cooper reported that of the top ten wines, five came from Central Otago, four from Marlborough and one from Waipara. This compares with all top ten wines coming from Marlborough in an equivalent blind tasting from last year. Cooper sugggests that this has to do with more Central Otago production becoming available in commercial quantities, than the relative qualities of the regions’ Pinot Noir.

As is the case for other New Zealand wine, New Zealand Pinot Noir is fruit-driven, forward and early maturing in the bottle. It tends to be quite full bodied (for the variety), very approachable and oak maturation tends to be restrained. High quality examples of New Zealand Pinot Noir are distinguished by savoury, earthy flavours with a greater complexity.

White

In white wines Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc predominate in plantings and production. Typically Chardonnay planting predominate more the further north one goes, however it is planted and produced in Central Otago. There is no discernible difference in styles for Chardonnay between the New Zealand wine regions so far. Individual wine makers and the particular qualities of a vintage are more likely to determine factors such as malolactic fermentation or the use of oak for aging.

New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc has been described by some as “alive with flavors of cut grass and fresh fruits”, and others as “cat’s pee on a gooseberry bush” (but not necessarily as a criticism).

Other white varietals commonly include (in no particular order) Riesling, Gew?rztraminer, and Pinot Gris, and less commonly Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc, M?ller-Thurgau and Viognier.

Riesling is produced predominantly in Martinborough and south. The same may be said with less forcefulness about Gew?rztraminer (which is also planted extensively in Gisborne). Pinot Gris is being planted increasingly, especially in Martinborough and the South Island. Chenin Blanc was once more important, but the viticultural peculiarities of the variety, particularly its unpredictable cropping in New Zealand have lead to its disfavour. Milton Estate in Gisborne produces an example of this variety.

The market success of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and lately Pinot Noir mean that these varietals will dominate future planting.

Sparkling Wine

Excellent quality Methode Traditionelle sparkling wine is produced in New Zealand. Typically, it was Marlborough that was the commercial birthplace of New Zealand Methode Traditionelle sparkling wine. Marlborough still produces a number of high quality sparkling wines, and has attracted both investment from Champagne producers (Deutz) and also champanois wine-makers (Daniel Le Brun). Other sparkling wines from Marlborough include Pelorous (from Cloudy Bay), and the now venerable Montana/Pernod Ricard brand, Lindauer.

Wine Regions of New Zealand

Wairarapa

The Wellington/Wairarapa wine-growing region is one of New Zealand’s smallest, with several sub-regions, which include Gladstone, Martinborough, Masterton and Opaki. Martinborough was the original area planted, on the basis of careful scientific study, in the 1970’s, which identified it’s soils and climate as perfecttly suited to the ciultivation of Pinot Noir. As a consequence, many of the vineyards established there are older then their counter-parts in the rest of the Wairarapa. Subtle differences are seen in the wines from the South Wairarapa (which includes Martinborough), which has more maritime influences, to those grown further north.

Martinborough

Martinborough is a small wine village located at the foot of New Zealand’s North Island, in the South Wairarapa, just 1.5 hours drive from Wellington, the capital city. The combination of topography, geology, climate and human effort has led to the region becoming one of New Zealand’s premier wine regions in spite of it’s small size. Less than 2% of the country’s wine production is grown in Martinborough, yet in shows and competitions, it rates much more highly. The local Winegrowers organisation states: “Officially New Zealand’s sixth largest region, Wellington/Wairarapa is small in production terms but makes a large contribution to the country’s quality winemaking reputation.”.

The vineyards are shielded from the elements by steep mountains, while the growing season from flowering to harvest is amongst the longest in New Zealand. Naturally breezy conditions control vine vigour, creating lower yields of grapes with greater intensity. A genuine cool climate, with a long, dry autumn in NZ, provides an ideal ripening conditions for Pinot Noir and other varietals, such as Riesling, Syrah and Pinot Gris. A small number of wineries are producing Cabernet Franc of a high standard. Most of the wineries are located on the area’s alluvial river terraces near the township (the Te Muna, Huangarau and Dry River Regions).

Martinborough wineries are relatively small and typically family-owned, with the focus on producing quality rather than quantity. Relatively small yields enable Martinborough winemakers to devote themselves to handcrafting superior wines. Among the many long-established wineries, several, including Te Kairanga, Ata Rangi, Palliser Estate, Murdoch James Estate and Dry River, have become internationally recognised as premium producers of Pinot Noir.

Key production figures:

  1. The total Wellington/Wairarapa producing area is 758ha.
  2. The Wairarapa currently has 54 wineries, more than twice the 24 in the region in 1995.
  3. Predominant varieties for the 2006 vintage were: Pinot Noir (38%); Sauvignon Blanc (35%); Chardonnay (11%); Riesling (0.08%); Pinot Gris (0.03%).& the Cabernets (incl. Cab sauvignon & franc (0.012%); and the remaining 16% includes Merlot, Syrah, Malbec, and Gewurztraminer.
  4. In 2007, the producing area in Wellington/Wairarapa represented just two percent of the total New Zealand wine producing area.