Beyond Marlborough

Other New Zealand Wine Regions

We are blessed with a generous selection of wines from the Marlborough wine region of New Zealand. Or to put it another way, we don’t have much of an opportunity to try anything else!  80% of local selections are from Marlborough, and almost every white wine is from that region.

Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a good Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc – a wine brand that has established its identity in the international wine market. But other New Zealand regions make great wines too, and it would be nice to give some a try.

Marlborough

Perhaps it should be no surprise Marlborough dominates our shelves as it also dominates New Zealand production (77%) and is composed mostly of the famed Sauvignon Blanc (86%).

The region is located at the northern tip of the South Island and is relatively more sunny and drier than other parts of the country. Temperatures are moderate, with a considerable diurnal range, allowing growers to both maintain good levels of acidity and enjoy long hang times with unhurried ripening. The area seems to have been designed for Sauvignon Blanc!

Nelson, Hawke’s Bay, Central Otago, Martinborough

Middle Earth (see top picture) isn’t a wine region of New Zealand (the country where much of Lord of the Rings was filmed), but Nelson, etc. are some of the better known regions after Marlborough. Nelson is Marlborough’s neighbour and vies with it for the sunniest grape growing region of the country. There are two wines from Nelson at the NLC.

Much further south, in fact the most southerly wine region of the world, is Central Otago. The combination of altitude and semi-continental climate make cool climate wines such as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay a given. The NLC offers four Pinot Noir wines from this region.

Moving to east coast of the North Island, Hawke’s Bay is one region where red wines from Syrah, Cabernet, and Merlot are relatively abundant. It is represented by a half dozen wines at the NLC. At the bottom of the island is the Martinborough sub-region, directly across the Cook Strait from Marlborough, echoing its conditions and style of production, but in much smaller proportion. There are no wines from this region at the NLC. Other areas of North Island are producing quality wines of note, but in small quantities, and are rarely seen in these parts.

Canterbury/Waipara Valley

One of the few locally available New Zealand white wines not from Marlborough is the Waipara Hills Pinot Gris 2015 (NLC $18.90) from Waipara Valley. Waipara Valley is located at about the middle of the east coast of the South Island and is a subsection of the Canterbury region. Although it gets less sunshine, Waipara is otherwise not a lot different in its growing conditions than its more northerly neighbour. Production is tiny – less than 3% of the country’s total.

The wine was a brilliant straw-gold with just hints of pale-green highlights. The aroma was abundant and weighty, with sweet fresh apples, and a touch of baked apple as well as pineapple. A sip delivered mouth-watering acidity, lovely soft fruit flavours of apple and pear, and exited with a lengthy finish. Not just a good value but a delicious wine, my score was 16, for a rating of Very Good.

 

 

Rosé Season?

When will we have some decent warm weather this year to justify sipping some rosé (if you need that reason)? The NLC has bet we will, and you can find a selection of new or limited release wines from various countries and regions on display now.