New Zealand: Marlborough, new zealand
Published: 03 Mar 05
The overwhelming success of New Zealand's wine in the past decade or two has been driven almost exclusively by the quality reputation of Sauvignon Blanc. Just over 50% of all wine exported from New Zealand
is Sauvignon Blanc. In the past three to four years, critical acclaim for Kiwi Pinot Noir has also been growing - but the automatic association between wine and the land of the long white cloud is Sauvignon Blanc.This can be attributed essentially to just one region - Marlborough - and initially
to just one wine - Cloudy Bay.
Located at a southerly latitude of 41°, Marlborough can be found at the northeastern tip of New Zealand's South Island. Prior to the vineyard boom the South Island was assumed to be good for only sheep and cereal farming. In 1960 only 400ha of vineyard existed in the entire country - mostly located in Auckland and Hawkes Bay. By 1980 that figure had shot up to over 5 600ha - with nearly 1 000 of that in Marlborough alone.
In 1990 Marlborough only had nine growers. By 2000, with more than 4 000ha under vine, its number of growers was in the hundreds. In 2004 the total vineyard planting in New Zealand stood at 18 112ha - with Marlborough having become the country's most important and biggest wine region, accounting for 5 641ha of plantings. Blenheim is the centre of the Marlborough wine universe and is surrounded not only by wineries but by olive groves too.
It was in 1973 that Montana, New Zealand's largest wine company, established a small experimental vineyard in Marlborough. The company's first release of wine was in 1980 and the quality of its crisp, vibrant Sauvignon Blanc was too good to ignore. But the man credited with the biggest contribution is David Hohnen, one of the co-founders of famous Australian winery Cape Mentelle. He launched Cloudy Bay in 1985 and it created a stir worldwide with its pungent, crisp, fruity style. It soon became a cult wine - and still is.
Anyone who has tasted some of the early Cloudy Bay wines will attest to the extreme pungency and distinctively asparagus-like aromatics. This has changed slightly over the years and is now more muted, though many believe New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc can still be easily identified in blind tastings by its obvious "sweaty armpit" aroma. Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc offers a broad spectrum of taste - from granadilla and lime to figs, gooseberries, grapefruit and even herbaceous, grassy, nettle flavours.
The success of wines from Marlborough is linked specifically to its soils and unique climate. Cool climate is a must - something the area supplies in abundance. It is known for its long days, very cool nights, and long autumns. Long sunshine hours and a long slow ripening period, well into autumn, means the grapes reach good sugar and ripeness levels while retaining their acidity - unlike in South Africa where the grapes ripen quickly during the hot summers and the acid levels drop quickly.
The soils are essentially alluvial loams overlaying gravelly, shingle subsoils. In places - usually north of the highway bisecting the wide, flat Wairau valley - they are well drained, while those on the southern side of the highway are not as well drained. Rain is not overly plentiful so irrigation is used in some places. But autumn rain can sometimes create problems for the notoriously thin-skinned Sauvignon Blanc grapes, causing fungal diseases and rot.
Marlborough also shows good potential in some areas for Bordeaux varietals - Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec - notably in the Awatere valley, just south of Wairau. It's cooler and windier in Awatere so harvest is delayed by a week or two, allowing more time for ripening.
Certain wineries have shown that good results can be achieved with Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and even Riesling. The afore-mentioned natural high acidity levels on grapes grown in Marlborough mean the region is also suitable for making base wines for sparkling wines - something that was recognised as early as 1987 when the first Pelorus sparkling wine was produced. Just three years later, in 1990, Champagne house Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin bought a major chunk of Cape Mentelle, before gaining total control of the company in 2001.
In February every year the annual Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc festival is held and thousands of winelovers from all over the world flock to it.
Top producers are all represented - Cloudy Bay, Villa Maria, Palliser, Wither Hills, Hunters, Nautilus and Vavasour - all offering special private bottlings or reserve ranges to people who've taken the effort to travel long distances in pursuit of their passion for Kiwi Sauvignon Blanc.
Located at a southerly latitude of 41°, Marlborough can be found at the northeastern tip of New Zealand's South Island. Prior to the vineyard boom the South Island was assumed to be good for only sheep and cereal farming. In 1960 only 400ha of vineyard existed in the entire country - mostly located in Auckland and Hawkes Bay. By 1980 that figure had shot up to over 5 600ha - with nearly 1 000 of that in Marlborough alone.
In 1990 Marlborough only had nine growers. By 2000, with more than 4 000ha under vine, its number of growers was in the hundreds. In 2004 the total vineyard planting in New Zealand stood at 18 112ha - with Marlborough having become the country's most important and biggest wine region, accounting for 5 641ha of plantings. Blenheim is the centre of the Marlborough wine universe and is surrounded not only by wineries but by olive groves too.
It was in 1973 that Montana, New Zealand's largest wine company, established a small experimental vineyard in Marlborough. The company's first release of wine was in 1980 and the quality of its crisp, vibrant Sauvignon Blanc was too good to ignore. But the man credited with the biggest contribution is David Hohnen, one of the co-founders of famous Australian winery Cape Mentelle. He launched Cloudy Bay in 1985 and it created a stir worldwide with its pungent, crisp, fruity style. It soon became a cult wine - and still is.
Anyone who has tasted some of the early Cloudy Bay wines will attest to the extreme pungency and distinctively asparagus-like aromatics. This has changed slightly over the years and is now more muted, though many believe New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc can still be easily identified in blind tastings by its obvious "sweaty armpit" aroma. Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc offers a broad spectrum of taste - from granadilla and lime to figs, gooseberries, grapefruit and even herbaceous, grassy, nettle flavours.
The success of wines from Marlborough is linked specifically to its soils and unique climate. Cool climate is a must - something the area supplies in abundance. It is known for its long days, very cool nights, and long autumns. Long sunshine hours and a long slow ripening period, well into autumn, means the grapes reach good sugar and ripeness levels while retaining their acidity - unlike in South Africa where the grapes ripen quickly during the hot summers and the acid levels drop quickly.
The soils are essentially alluvial loams overlaying gravelly, shingle subsoils. In places - usually north of the highway bisecting the wide, flat Wairau valley - they are well drained, while those on the southern side of the highway are not as well drained. Rain is not overly plentiful so irrigation is used in some places. But autumn rain can sometimes create problems for the notoriously thin-skinned Sauvignon Blanc grapes, causing fungal diseases and rot.
Marlborough also shows good potential in some areas for Bordeaux varietals - Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec - notably in the Awatere valley, just south of Wairau. It's cooler and windier in Awatere so harvest is delayed by a week or two, allowing more time for ripening.
Certain wineries have shown that good results can be achieved with Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and even Riesling. The afore-mentioned natural high acidity levels on grapes grown in Marlborough mean the region is also suitable for making base wines for sparkling wines - something that was recognised as early as 1987 when the first Pelorus sparkling wine was produced. Just three years later, in 1990, Champagne house Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin bought a major chunk of Cape Mentelle, before gaining total control of the company in 2001.
In February every year the annual Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc festival is held and thousands of winelovers from all over the world flock to it.
Top producers are all represented - Cloudy Bay, Villa Maria, Palliser, Wither Hills, Hunters, Nautilus and Vavasour - all offering special private bottlings or reserve ranges to people who've taken the effort to travel long distances in pursuit of their passion for Kiwi Sauvignon Blanc.
