New Zealand’s wines making an impact in the U.S. market
Having already covered Australia and much of America, I felt it was time to look at the wines of New Zealand. On being asked, most wine drinkers will admit to knowing sauvignon blanc from New Zealand and maybe a little pinot noir.
Pinot noir overtook chardonnay recently as the second-most exported varietal. The United States is set to become the largest importer of Kiwi wines by value for 2007 and by volume in 2009, according to several New Zealand wine growers. The United Kingdom was the biggest market, but the United States is developing a taste for wines of the world.
New Zealand is broadly divided in to north and south islands where a range of wines are made.
The North Island contains the areas of Auckland, Gisbourne, Hawke’s Bay and Martinborough/Wairarapa. The South Island includes the well-known growing area of Marlborough as well as Canterbury and Central Otago.
When New Zealand wines started to appear on the international market, it was the bright, grapefruit-dominated sauvignon blancs that made their mark. They revolutionized our understanding of the varietal. I can recall people getting their allocated case of Cloudy Bay and ushering me quietly to the cellar to see the case proudly set apart from all the great European wines. I never understood the fuss, but clearly something was happening.
In the intervening years, New Zealand wines have gone from strong to stronger. Chardonnay is giving way to pinot noir (I was never that impressed by the chardonnay), a little Riesling which can be very good, some pinot gris and interesting Bordeaux-style reds that show a lot of promise.
Whites predominate because of the cool climate that prevails on a Pacific Ocean island that is often no more than 160 miles across. The climate is largely maritime. The soil is varied due to the country being highly volcanic in nature. That leads to the usual volcanic influences in the soil as well as valley soils and clay being abundant.
North Island is home to Hawke’s Bay, where some up-and-coming reds are being made by Hatton Estate, Gimblett Road, Te Mata Estate and Craggy Range, among others. Some Bordeaux-style reds, while not inexpensive, are quite amazing and show real promise. Most wines mentioned are available in the United States. You will be pleasantly surprised. The area does make a lot of white wine, but the reds are, for me, the real stars.
Auckland is also known for high quality wines. Producers such as Babich, Goldwater, Kumeu River and Villa Maria (producing in Auckland and Marlborough) all make brilliant wines that must be tried. Naturally, really good sauvignon comes from this area, but the reds are good, too. There are about 100 wineries here and some are among the oldest in New Zealand.
Moving south to Marlborough, this area is almost ubiquitous on New Zealand labels. It is as if almost all wine from the country comes from this region. The reason is, of course, the fact that producers like Brancott, Nautilus Estate, Villa Maria and Cloudy Bay make sauvignon blanc wines that conquered the world. The trend was started by the Montana winery – my first encounter with Kiwi wines – and once the world got a taste for these wines, it was natural to explore others.
Cloudy Bay has near-cult status.
I have always liked Oyster Bay wines because they combine great value with flavor. The sauvignon blanc is balanced and not too over-the-top with grapefruit flavors, which is something I find a bit overpowering in many New Zealand wines. Even the merlot is good. I also really like Wither Hills, the maker of a good fruity pinot noir.
Further south in the Otago area are some solid wines, including those by Felton Road and William Hill, both of which make good pinot noirs. Sauvignon blanc and several bottles of rosé show the potential of this region. Pinot noir is notoriously hard to grow but Otago, Marlborough and the North Island growers show that New Zealand will, in time, make a real impact in the minds of pinot noir drinkers.
Vintages in New Zealand do vary and they are produced opposite to those on the northern hemisphere. For whites, it is often best to consume them fairly young, though some can age well. Good years are 2007, 2006 (south), 2005 (Marlborough) for whites and 2007, 2006 for the fast-emerging reds.
I am sure most wine lovers have tried New Zealand wines in recent years. Like so many new world producers, the initial focus is on good quality wines for the world market. The better wines are appearing in better wine stores. The trick now is to seek out the higher quality wines, notably the reds as they emerge while enjoying a decent wine from New Zealand by the pool or on the yacht.