What follows in the coming reports and pictures is exactly what is includes in my previous blog http://wineworld.spaces.live.com/
The idea of bringing the reports to new space is mainly to keep the information in only one place.
I have not done any changes to the original posts, because I believe that every experience has its particular moment.
Perhaps, today I would have other opinion on some issues, but what I reproduce here belongs to that time.
In this Part 10, I report my experience in Marlborough, South Island – New Zealand, on May and June 2007.
Please, click on the photos to see the slide show and double click to go Picasa and see the map location.
Marlborough
When the first Marlborough vines were planted in 1973 few people predicted that the region would become New Zealand's largest and best known winegrowing area in little more than 20 years.
The distinctive pungency and zesty fruit flavors of the first wines captured the imagination of the country's winemakers and wine drinkers alike and sparked an unparalleled boom in vineyard development.
Montana and Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc wines attained a cult-like status around the wine-drinking world.
Worldwide interest in Marlborough wines, particularly Sauvignon Blanc, has continued to fuel that regional wine boom.
The free-draining, alluvial loams over gravelly subsoil in the Wairau and Awatere River valleys provide ideal growing conditions. Abundant sunshine with cool nights and a long growing season helps to build and maintain the vibrant fruit flavors for which Marlborough is now famous.
Sauvignon Blanc is the most planted grape variety with Chardonnay in second place, followed by Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sauvignon Blanc may be the star but Marlborough has also earned an enviable reputation for ‘Méthode Traditionelle’ sparkling wines as well as a wide range of both white and red table wines.
The seep farmers and fruit growers have largely been displaced by continuing plantings of vines, and no longer is it attention.
The area seems made for wine touring. It's full of outstanding scenery, with rows of vines marching across the plains and the peaks of the ranges surrounding the near horizons.
The township of Blenheim, the region's major centre, is surrounded by vineyards that extend well beyond the plains, covering some of the lower slopes and spilling into the Awatere Valley to the South.
The close-by Marlborough Sounds provide a summer vacation playground, with some relaxing resorts, and the waters are also home to a mussel and salmon farming industry.
The Kaikoura Coast, on the road south, is popular with visitors where whale-watching and swim with dolphins are some of the attractions.
Source: http://www.nzwine.com/regions/ and Cuisine Wine Country Magazine 2007.
Vineyard’s Work Experience
I arrived in Blenheim on the 14th of May, full of joy and excitement.
I have had made some contacts to find work in vineyards and in the very same day I call the contractor that I though could be the more trustworthy to work for – contractors can cheat on naïve staff and I wanted to make sure that my hard work would be paid correctly.
I accommodated myself in a backpacker’s hostel, where I met a crowd of people doing the same thing as me: traveling, working, learning, enjoying life, saving money – not all of those in the same order of priority.
I started working in the following day, in a vineyard which supplies grapes for Huia, a prestigious and relatively small winery, where, after a brief explanation of how to do the work, we started “wrapping”, which consists in train the vine’s canes on the wire in order to encourage the production of new fruiting canes at specific positions on the vine.
We began with vines of Pinot Noir, which have had the its leaves fell down earlier than the other varieties, factor which made the whole work on them (pruning, stripping and wrapping) much easier.
All process was closely supervised to guarantee that the result was what the winery was looking for, and in that case, the best grapes which the site was able to produce.
In the first two days we worked in hourly rate and the following ones at contract rate, what mean that in the first we could take our time to do the job and in the second to o it as fast as we could in order to have our wages paid by production (plant wrapped).
I was never fast and I could not do the job quickly, just because I cared very much about those beauties, always analyzing from the roots to the top cane how I could help that to produce the best wine ever.
During my month of work at Marlborough I learnt a lot, and I would had learn even more if the people who work on the vineyard were more interest in the result of the process.
Many New Zealanders learnt to work with grapes but it doesn't mean that all of them had chosen it for the passion for wine. Mostly, they ended up in this field as a natural consequence of the moving from farming to viticulture that happened in the country in the past three decades.
Although not sharing my enthusiasm, my supervisor was always kind to try to find an answer for the innumerous questions I had every single day.
Some locals realize how important the region is for wine growing, but others have no clue. For their lack of knowledge they excuse themselves saying: "we are kiwis and kiwis drink beer".
Farming is still a big contribution to the country's economy; however wine is a very seductive thing, especially if you are in on of the most prestigious places in the "New World" to produce it.
One of the main differences I notice between New Zealand and the other "New World" countries I had visited so far was that its production is mainly focused in the external market, mainly because the internal is not big enough to support the industry. Furthermore, wine is not the national's "cup of tea". Wine here is still seen as an exclusive thing; as in other parts of the world; and one of the reasons is price. Apart from the fact that is very easy to find a reasonable wine in any corner of the country, a good wine can cost more than the majority is willing to pay for it.
I worked from the first sun light until it had disappeared behind the mountains. In early mornings when the frost covered the vineyard with a fin layer of ice, I took longer to do the task because my hands were frozen from the wet gloves. In late afternoon when the day seemed that had last forever I still found motivation to contemplate the scenery and leave the field with a smile - Work outdoors can be very rewarding with you like being in touch with nature, even when it shows the coldest side of it.
I loved to observe the whole environment: The birds which made us company during all day long; The busy traffic of airplanes which indicated that the airport was near by and also that the small town of Blenheim has became an important spot in the map; The wind which could blow all around and make us to wrap carefully some fragile vines; The Whiter Hills spying on us with their rosy color; The wind machines which waited patiently to get in action in any dangerous frost; The grapes left in the vines which had an intense flavor of over ripen fruit and showed why this is a special spot; The canes that were healthy - wondering how they would look like in summer time; The canes those were unhealthy - guessing why that had happened; The soil that was sometimes white, occasionally grey, sometimes stony; at times like the soil of my family's garden in my childhood; The stones with different colors and shapes... Well, I didn't want to miss a second of my close experience with the vines which produce on of the reasons why I am writing these words. Perhaps those are the reasons why I wasn't fast.
To be in Marlborough was like a dream coming true. Every time I looked over the vineyard I thought "It was just a wish a year ago". Life is so much worthy when you follow your dreams and make the most to help them to come true.
Although I did not have the chance to enroll in any course or wine event, the fields of Marlborough taught me a lot in its wise silence and the people which I met along my away, trough the vines or not, showed me a way to deal with the business that I really admire: simplicity.
I stayed in Blenheim until the 17th of June, and every single day - even those when my fingers hurt from the secateurs and my shoulders were in pain from using the loppers, I was absolutely happy. It was my best moment in New Zealand. Just good memories, which I am sure, will always remember.
Marlborough Wineries
My very first visit was in a winery that is the limit of two wine regions: Marlborough and Waipara; located in an idyllic seashore village.
KAIKOURA
One day after I had one of the most wonderful experiences in my life: swimming with Dusky dolphins at the sea, I made my way walking to Kaikoura Winery, which sits on a limestone bluff above the rocky coast just south of the picturesque town from which takes its name.
Visitors can admire outstanding views of the sea and snow-capped mountains as they sample their wines which use grapes form local and Wairau Valley vineyards.
Established in 1998 by a small group of shareholders, that was hands on business from the very beginning – as the pictures of the winery building site and the planting of the vineyards provide evidence.
The winery has a very interesting structure with an underground cellar, hollowed out of limestone.
The sad part of the visit was to learn that they had lost the entire yield this year to the weather, which affected the vulnerable and unprepared sites in the country.
Wine is a very risky business.
BOULDEVINES
The second visit in Marlborough was two weeks before I went there to stay. It happened while traveling with “Magic Bus” (the travelers Hop-On Hop-Off service I have been using through out the country).
We stopped on our way to Nelson at The Village, which has a cellar door for boutique wines. The wines they had at the showcase were from the Bouldevines Estate Vineyard that is located in heritage Dog Point Road, stretched across 31ha of the boulders-strewn flats of the lower Omaka River Flats, has fertile, free-draining soils, with the legendary warm days and cool nights of Marlborough.
The wine production is small, not standing for international markets. However the eyes - and mouth – of critics are opened even to the tiny parcel of production and two of the wines we have tried on our visit were listed on the “100 Top New Releases” at the Gourmet Traveler, Wine (May 2007):
Bouldevines Sauvignon Blanc 2006 $21.50 “89/100 A grassy style Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with an influence of tropical fruit and redcurrant the give an intriguing flavor contrast; A moderately concentrated wine with typical pungency and ethereal texture.”
Bouldvevines Chardonnay 2006 $28 “91/100 Gentle, charming, soft-textured Chardonnay that gains with silken texture and extra mouth feel from a relatively high (14.5%) alcohol. The wine has subtle white peach, citrus, hazelnut, and spicy oak complexity”.
SERESIN
The next place I visited was Seresin Vineyards and Winery and the reason to do so was an interview with the general manager that generated a work experience with the winery.
I was invited to join the team of waitress in one of the exclusive and prestigious dinners of the winery, which took place at Marlborough Sounds and was an excellent opportunity to get a little closer to the food & wine affair.
It was a very pleasant event, where everyone seemed to be having a good time (no wonder, delicious 5-course-dinner, made with their extra virgin oil just released, paired with the best of the organically grown and made Seresin wines.
I also had a good time and enjoyed myself and even had the opportunity to meet Michael Seresin, the owner how is also a cinematographer and was the responsible for the photography on such film as Midnight Express (who is more than 30 years old must remember) and is one of my favourite films. So, I had to control my excitement and focus on my duties.
Blenheim Visits
The first visit while residing in the region could not be in any other apart from the winery I worked for.
After an early finish of labor day shift at the vineyard located just off the Huia’s Cellar Door I invited my workmates Mette and Kat to try some of their wines and have a proper “happy hour”.
HUIA
The winery is named after a unique New Zealand bird, which, unluckily, had the fail feathers highly prized by Maori and Europeans, fact that carried them to extinction.
Winemakers Claire and Mike Allan worked to others highly regarded Marlborough producers before devoting all their energy to their small winery, from 1996.
Huia is focused on had crafting fine unique wines expressing the richness of Marlborough grapes from the vineyard through to the table.
Grapes are sourced from their 30-hectare vineyard at Rapaura and the Wairau Valley and also a few other selected growers on specific sites around the Wairau Valley.
The viticulture techniques applied across all vineyards aim to maximize grape quality in every vintage and to work at the Huia and its growers vineyard was a good way to find out how a work well done in the fields helps to produce a good wine.
The owners also had worked in the Champagne region of France and, had learned the lesson.
Among the wines my work mates and me tried in an informal nice chat at the Cellar Door, the Huia Brut stood out of the others – which were not bad at all.
Huia Brut is a classically made traditional method vintage sparkling wine that delivers a wonderful bubbly experience full of complexity, bread and hazelnut aromas, making you pray for more.
It is an intimate winery with a welcoming cellar door and knowledgeable staff.
I waited very long to my next wine trail, and did it just one week before of leaving Marlborough. However, It was in great style (I mean, my understanding for style): with the good company of some of my best mates there and I picnic that was savored on our way from one winery to another, in the car.
We choose to visit wineries that could interest all of us in a very democratic way, and the first one was Wither Hills.
WITHER HILLS
John Marris planted the first contract grown grapes in Marlborough in 1978. His son Brent was inspired to follow a winemaking career and became the first qualified winemaker from the region. This formed the foundation for Wither Hills.
The winery is named after the landmark range of hills that border the Wairau Valley to South.
The business is now owned by brewing giant Lion Nathan, but Brent is still on control of the winemaking.
Unusually for a big producer, the winery specializes in just three varietals: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc, of course.
Wither Hills believes that the finest wineries are always created from exceptional vineyards, declaring its philosophy as “Created in the Vineyard”, which consist on 354 hectares of sunny, free-draining, silty alluvial loam where the grapes are grown. From those, Pinot Noir is 100% Estate grown and the other two 100% Estate controlled.
It is set in a stunning new building with a tasting room and has a balcony with views over the Wairau Valley, where we enjoyed our tastes while chatting.
The next propriety was in a short distance driving and it was where we spend longest.
VILLA MARIA
The lady who helped us was very kind and explained as much as we demanded about the wines, production, and so on, while pouring as much samples as we wished. My mates were in heaven.
I occasionally stepped beside the group to savor the wines and in think about that in own peace. From that moment I still have in mind the most outstanding wine of the day: Taylors Pass, Pinot Noir, Marlborough, 2005. The wine is from a single vineyard and is sold for the top price in the cellar, $56. A well deserved price if you want your memories last, as the sensual taste of the wine did.
The winery is investing in the idea of identifying its wines by terroir. In order to do that, the best production has the single vineyard's name mentioned on the label. This idea is described by the Managing Director, George Fostonich:
“These are terroir wines, reflecting the unique vineyard sites from which they come. I encourage a non-interventional winemaking approach, allowing the wine to tale its own path and express its own distinct personality.”
Villa Maria Estate knows why it is in the market for. It offers a wide range of styles and prices, with a professional approach to the business and a "family touch”. Well done.
We bought a bottle of Villa Maria's Riesling as a gift to our driver, who had to take it easy while on the trail, not drinking and driving. The choice of wine was made firstly because that was the wine Marika (name of our lovely and responsible driver) liked the most and secondly, because that would be a natural choice of a German, as she in fact is.
For our next winery I suggest a must-to-do-visit, mainly for historical reasons and my mates accepted it. Good for me.
CLOUDY BAY
On our short drive, we had picnic on the car and a merry humour. What difference to makes to be with good mates.
It was already dark and we were almost running out of time to do the last visits of the day.
Cloudy Bay Vineyards has a new impressive building and a fire place, which dominates the attention, gives a warm welcome.
My attention was divided between what we found indoors an also outside, where you can see some of the oldest vines in Marlborough.
The winery is one of the precursors in the region and responsible for the image and respectability of Marlborough's wines.
The winery was founded in 1985 by David Hohnen of Western Australia's Cape Mentelle Vineyards, whose interest had been captured by the pungent, penetrating aromas and flavours of the early Marlborough Sauvingnon Blanc. Cloudy Bay and Cape Mentelle are now part of the huge French luxury goods group Louis Vuitton Möet Henessey, but the winery is still run -as it is has been from the day one- by the English-born, Australian raised Kevin Judd.
Still nowadays in the wine market, Marlborough Sauvingnon Blanc is related to Cloudy Bay.
However, Cloudy Bay's Sauvingnon Blanc is not just about fruity and lively stile. The Te Koko 2004 ($40), a version «growing up» of the Sauvy (as Sauvingnon Blanc is called by the locals) is released as an aged wine (3 years in the cellar).
Te Koko is a full-bodied version, carefully made and, it was the best surprise in the prestigious named place.
Last but not least, it was Saint Clair a rising star in Marlborough sky.
SAINT CLAIR
The winery won the trophy for the Best New Zealand Producer, at the International Wine and Spirit Competition 2005, in London.
It deserves the prize, for the results of the work; wine of course; and the process in the winery and vineyard. From what I saw and tasted during the visit, added to what I learned from one of its workers, they seem to be passionate, honest and to keen on sharing their knowledge and commitment with all levels of staff, including giving them the opportunity to taste different wines in order to know what they are helping to make.
Saint Clair Estate produces a wide range of varieties, including Sauvignon Blanc (surprise, surprise!), Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Noir and Merlot, available in four ranges of wines at varying price levels ($16-$28). A Viogner is also a recent addition to the range.
Each of these wines is made with fruit from specific vineyard sites in the region, specially selected for their ability to produce wines of uncompromising quality and character.
It has five vineyards in different areas in Marlborough, including the Rapaura, Omaka and Awatere valleys, as well as a new site for Sauvingnon Blanc in Benmorven. These wide choices in Marlborough vineyard sites allow Saint Clair to specialize its plantings by grape variety to the sub-regions that provide the most suitable ‘terroir’ for each.
It shows that to identify’ terroir’ is becoming a fact in Marlborough winemaking. The question is: Will the market pay for this distinction to «New Word wines»? Let’s wait and allow the market to talk by itself.
In my case, I already spoke: I left the place with a bottle of Saint Clair, Pinot Noir 2005, Pioneer Block 4 Sawcut ($23), which was very much appreciated with a meal in the following day - that is new world style: wine is made to be consumed shortly.
Our troupe ended the wine trail for the day, mainly because there was none winery opened at that stage. But I was not done yet: I could not leave Marlborough without visiting the winery from which I discovered the liquid treasures of New Zealand – when I was still living in UK and had in the glasses of Montana Sauvignon Blanc the memories of tropical flavors, reminding my homeland.
So, in the next weekend, in a cold rainy Saturday, I walked 5 km to reach the biggest winery in the country: Montana.
MONTANA, Brancott Winery
The business is located in the main highway south of Blenheim and includes a multi-million-dollar restaurant and visitor centre that has became an almost compulsory stop for tourists – included myself.
Montana, now part of the French-owned Pernod Ricard group, revolutionized the New Zealand wine industry in 1973 when planted its first vines in Marlborough, a region overlooked by winemakers, which was sheep and cattle farming territory.
Today Montana is by far the biggest wine producer in Marlborough and it is a good example of the way New Zealand approaches the business: praising its own territory and finding its own innovative solutions to deal with problems. It has high technology developed by their professionals to solve their needs.
This is the manner that a beautiful island, isolated in the South Pacific (as the Kiwis use to refer their country) found to generate a revolution in the wine business: looking around, to their own environment, resources and... towards ahead.
Bye for now!
Marcia Amaral
The idea of bringing the reports to new space is mainly to keep the information in only one place.
I have not done any changes to the original posts, because I believe that every experience has its particular moment.
Perhaps, today I would have other opinion on some issues, but what I reproduce here belongs to that time.
In this Part 10, I report my experience in Marlborough, South Island – New Zealand, on May and June 2007.
Please, click on the photos to see the slide show and double click to go Picasa and see the map location.
Marlborough
When the first Marlborough vines were planted in 1973 few people predicted that the region would become New Zealand's largest and best known winegrowing area in little more than 20 years.
The distinctive pungency and zesty fruit flavors of the first wines captured the imagination of the country's winemakers and wine drinkers alike and sparked an unparalleled boom in vineyard development.
Montana and Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc wines attained a cult-like status around the wine-drinking world.
Worldwide interest in Marlborough wines, particularly Sauvignon Blanc, has continued to fuel that regional wine boom.
The free-draining, alluvial loams over gravelly subsoil in the Wairau and Awatere River valleys provide ideal growing conditions. Abundant sunshine with cool nights and a long growing season helps to build and maintain the vibrant fruit flavors for which Marlborough is now famous.
Sauvignon Blanc is the most planted grape variety with Chardonnay in second place, followed by Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sauvignon Blanc may be the star but Marlborough has also earned an enviable reputation for ‘Méthode Traditionelle’ sparkling wines as well as a wide range of both white and red table wines.
The seep farmers and fruit growers have largely been displaced by continuing plantings of vines, and no longer is it attention.
The area seems made for wine touring. It's full of outstanding scenery, with rows of vines marching across the plains and the peaks of the ranges surrounding the near horizons.
The township of Blenheim, the region's major centre, is surrounded by vineyards that extend well beyond the plains, covering some of the lower slopes and spilling into the Awatere Valley to the South.
The close-by Marlborough Sounds provide a summer vacation playground, with some relaxing resorts, and the waters are also home to a mussel and salmon farming industry.
The Kaikoura Coast, on the road south, is popular with visitors where whale-watching and swim with dolphins are some of the attractions.
Source: http://www.nzwine.com/regions/ and Cuisine Wine Country Magazine 2007.
Vineyard’s Work Experience
I arrived in Blenheim on the 14th of May, full of joy and excitement.
I have had made some contacts to find work in vineyards and in the very same day I call the contractor that I though could be the more trustworthy to work for – contractors can cheat on naïve staff and I wanted to make sure that my hard work would be paid correctly.
I accommodated myself in a backpacker’s hostel, where I met a crowd of people doing the same thing as me: traveling, working, learning, enjoying life, saving money – not all of those in the same order of priority.
I started working in the following day, in a vineyard which supplies grapes for Huia, a prestigious and relatively small winery, where, after a brief explanation of how to do the work, we started “wrapping”, which consists in train the vine’s canes on the wire in order to encourage the production of new fruiting canes at specific positions on the vine.
We began with vines of Pinot Noir, which have had the its leaves fell down earlier than the other varieties, factor which made the whole work on them (pruning, stripping and wrapping) much easier.
All process was closely supervised to guarantee that the result was what the winery was looking for, and in that case, the best grapes which the site was able to produce.
In the first two days we worked in hourly rate and the following ones at contract rate, what mean that in the first we could take our time to do the job and in the second to o it as fast as we could in order to have our wages paid by production (plant wrapped).
I was never fast and I could not do the job quickly, just because I cared very much about those beauties, always analyzing from the roots to the top cane how I could help that to produce the best wine ever.
During my month of work at Marlborough I learnt a lot, and I would had learn even more if the people who work on the vineyard were more interest in the result of the process.
Many New Zealanders learnt to work with grapes but it doesn't mean that all of them had chosen it for the passion for wine. Mostly, they ended up in this field as a natural consequence of the moving from farming to viticulture that happened in the country in the past three decades.
Although not sharing my enthusiasm, my supervisor was always kind to try to find an answer for the innumerous questions I had every single day.
Some locals realize how important the region is for wine growing, but others have no clue. For their lack of knowledge they excuse themselves saying: "we are kiwis and kiwis drink beer".
Farming is still a big contribution to the country's economy; however wine is a very seductive thing, especially if you are in on of the most prestigious places in the "New World" to produce it.
One of the main differences I notice between New Zealand and the other "New World" countries I had visited so far was that its production is mainly focused in the external market, mainly because the internal is not big enough to support the industry. Furthermore, wine is not the national's "cup of tea". Wine here is still seen as an exclusive thing; as in other parts of the world; and one of the reasons is price. Apart from the fact that is very easy to find a reasonable wine in any corner of the country, a good wine can cost more than the majority is willing to pay for it.
I worked from the first sun light until it had disappeared behind the mountains. In early mornings when the frost covered the vineyard with a fin layer of ice, I took longer to do the task because my hands were frozen from the wet gloves. In late afternoon when the day seemed that had last forever I still found motivation to contemplate the scenery and leave the field with a smile - Work outdoors can be very rewarding with you like being in touch with nature, even when it shows the coldest side of it.
I loved to observe the whole environment: The birds which made us company during all day long; The busy traffic of airplanes which indicated that the airport was near by and also that the small town of Blenheim has became an important spot in the map; The wind which could blow all around and make us to wrap carefully some fragile vines; The Whiter Hills spying on us with their rosy color; The wind machines which waited patiently to get in action in any dangerous frost; The grapes left in the vines which had an intense flavor of over ripen fruit and showed why this is a special spot; The canes that were healthy - wondering how they would look like in summer time; The canes those were unhealthy - guessing why that had happened; The soil that was sometimes white, occasionally grey, sometimes stony; at times like the soil of my family's garden in my childhood; The stones with different colors and shapes... Well, I didn't want to miss a second of my close experience with the vines which produce on of the reasons why I am writing these words. Perhaps those are the reasons why I wasn't fast.
To be in Marlborough was like a dream coming true. Every time I looked over the vineyard I thought "It was just a wish a year ago". Life is so much worthy when you follow your dreams and make the most to help them to come true.
Although I did not have the chance to enroll in any course or wine event, the fields of Marlborough taught me a lot in its wise silence and the people which I met along my away, trough the vines or not, showed me a way to deal with the business that I really admire: simplicity.
I stayed in Blenheim until the 17th of June, and every single day - even those when my fingers hurt from the secateurs and my shoulders were in pain from using the loppers, I was absolutely happy. It was my best moment in New Zealand. Just good memories, which I am sure, will always remember.
Marlborough Wineries
My very first visit was in a winery that is the limit of two wine regions: Marlborough and Waipara; located in an idyllic seashore village.
KAIKOURA
One day after I had one of the most wonderful experiences in my life: swimming with Dusky dolphins at the sea, I made my way walking to Kaikoura Winery, which sits on a limestone bluff above the rocky coast just south of the picturesque town from which takes its name.
Visitors can admire outstanding views of the sea and snow-capped mountains as they sample their wines which use grapes form local and Wairau Valley vineyards.
Established in 1998 by a small group of shareholders, that was hands on business from the very beginning – as the pictures of the winery building site and the planting of the vineyards provide evidence.
The winery has a very interesting structure with an underground cellar, hollowed out of limestone.
The sad part of the visit was to learn that they had lost the entire yield this year to the weather, which affected the vulnerable and unprepared sites in the country.
Wine is a very risky business.
BOULDEVINES
The second visit in Marlborough was two weeks before I went there to stay. It happened while traveling with “Magic Bus” (the travelers Hop-On Hop-Off service I have been using through out the country).
We stopped on our way to Nelson at The Village, which has a cellar door for boutique wines. The wines they had at the showcase were from the Bouldevines Estate Vineyard that is located in heritage Dog Point Road, stretched across 31ha of the boulders-strewn flats of the lower Omaka River Flats, has fertile, free-draining soils, with the legendary warm days and cool nights of Marlborough.
The wine production is small, not standing for international markets. However the eyes - and mouth – of critics are opened even to the tiny parcel of production and two of the wines we have tried on our visit were listed on the “100 Top New Releases” at the Gourmet Traveler, Wine (May 2007):
Bouldevines Sauvignon Blanc 2006 $21.50 “89/100 A grassy style Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with an influence of tropical fruit and redcurrant the give an intriguing flavor contrast; A moderately concentrated wine with typical pungency and ethereal texture.”
Bouldvevines Chardonnay 2006 $28 “91/100 Gentle, charming, soft-textured Chardonnay that gains with silken texture and extra mouth feel from a relatively high (14.5%) alcohol. The wine has subtle white peach, citrus, hazelnut, and spicy oak complexity”.
SERESIN
The next place I visited was Seresin Vineyards and Winery and the reason to do so was an interview with the general manager that generated a work experience with the winery.
I was invited to join the team of waitress in one of the exclusive and prestigious dinners of the winery, which took place at Marlborough Sounds and was an excellent opportunity to get a little closer to the food & wine affair.
It was a very pleasant event, where everyone seemed to be having a good time (no wonder, delicious 5-course-dinner, made with their extra virgin oil just released, paired with the best of the organically grown and made Seresin wines.
I also had a good time and enjoyed myself and even had the opportunity to meet Michael Seresin, the owner how is also a cinematographer and was the responsible for the photography on such film as Midnight Express (who is more than 30 years old must remember) and is one of my favourite films. So, I had to control my excitement and focus on my duties.
Blenheim Visits
The first visit while residing in the region could not be in any other apart from the winery I worked for.
After an early finish of labor day shift at the vineyard located just off the Huia’s Cellar Door I invited my workmates Mette and Kat to try some of their wines and have a proper “happy hour”.
HUIA
The winery is named after a unique New Zealand bird, which, unluckily, had the fail feathers highly prized by Maori and Europeans, fact that carried them to extinction.
Winemakers Claire and Mike Allan worked to others highly regarded Marlborough producers before devoting all their energy to their small winery, from 1996.
Huia is focused on had crafting fine unique wines expressing the richness of Marlborough grapes from the vineyard through to the table.
Grapes are sourced from their 30-hectare vineyard at Rapaura and the Wairau Valley and also a few other selected growers on specific sites around the Wairau Valley.
The viticulture techniques applied across all vineyards aim to maximize grape quality in every vintage and to work at the Huia and its growers vineyard was a good way to find out how a work well done in the fields helps to produce a good wine.
The owners also had worked in the Champagne region of France and, had learned the lesson.
Among the wines my work mates and me tried in an informal nice chat at the Cellar Door, the Huia Brut stood out of the others – which were not bad at all.
Huia Brut is a classically made traditional method vintage sparkling wine that delivers a wonderful bubbly experience full of complexity, bread and hazelnut aromas, making you pray for more.
It is an intimate winery with a welcoming cellar door and knowledgeable staff.
I waited very long to my next wine trail, and did it just one week before of leaving Marlborough. However, It was in great style (I mean, my understanding for style): with the good company of some of my best mates there and I picnic that was savored on our way from one winery to another, in the car.
We choose to visit wineries that could interest all of us in a very democratic way, and the first one was Wither Hills.
WITHER HILLS
John Marris planted the first contract grown grapes in Marlborough in 1978. His son Brent was inspired to follow a winemaking career and became the first qualified winemaker from the region. This formed the foundation for Wither Hills.
The winery is named after the landmark range of hills that border the Wairau Valley to South.
The business is now owned by brewing giant Lion Nathan, but Brent is still on control of the winemaking.
Unusually for a big producer, the winery specializes in just three varietals: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc, of course.
Wither Hills believes that the finest wineries are always created from exceptional vineyards, declaring its philosophy as “Created in the Vineyard”, which consist on 354 hectares of sunny, free-draining, silty alluvial loam where the grapes are grown. From those, Pinot Noir is 100% Estate grown and the other two 100% Estate controlled.
It is set in a stunning new building with a tasting room and has a balcony with views over the Wairau Valley, where we enjoyed our tastes while chatting.
The next propriety was in a short distance driving and it was where we spend longest.
VILLA MARIA
The lady who helped us was very kind and explained as much as we demanded about the wines, production, and so on, while pouring as much samples as we wished. My mates were in heaven.
I occasionally stepped beside the group to savor the wines and in think about that in own peace. From that moment I still have in mind the most outstanding wine of the day: Taylors Pass, Pinot Noir, Marlborough, 2005. The wine is from a single vineyard and is sold for the top price in the cellar, $56. A well deserved price if you want your memories last, as the sensual taste of the wine did.
The winery is investing in the idea of identifying its wines by terroir. In order to do that, the best production has the single vineyard's name mentioned on the label. This idea is described by the Managing Director, George Fostonich:
“These are terroir wines, reflecting the unique vineyard sites from which they come. I encourage a non-interventional winemaking approach, allowing the wine to tale its own path and express its own distinct personality.”
Villa Maria Estate knows why it is in the market for. It offers a wide range of styles and prices, with a professional approach to the business and a "family touch”. Well done.
We bought a bottle of Villa Maria's Riesling as a gift to our driver, who had to take it easy while on the trail, not drinking and driving. The choice of wine was made firstly because that was the wine Marika (name of our lovely and responsible driver) liked the most and secondly, because that would be a natural choice of a German, as she in fact is.
For our next winery I suggest a must-to-do-visit, mainly for historical reasons and my mates accepted it. Good for me.
CLOUDY BAY
On our short drive, we had picnic on the car and a merry humour. What difference to makes to be with good mates.
It was already dark and we were almost running out of time to do the last visits of the day.
Cloudy Bay Vineyards has a new impressive building and a fire place, which dominates the attention, gives a warm welcome.
My attention was divided between what we found indoors an also outside, where you can see some of the oldest vines in Marlborough.
The winery is one of the precursors in the region and responsible for the image and respectability of Marlborough's wines.
The winery was founded in 1985 by David Hohnen of Western Australia's Cape Mentelle Vineyards, whose interest had been captured by the pungent, penetrating aromas and flavours of the early Marlborough Sauvingnon Blanc. Cloudy Bay and Cape Mentelle are now part of the huge French luxury goods group Louis Vuitton Möet Henessey, but the winery is still run -as it is has been from the day one- by the English-born, Australian raised Kevin Judd.
Still nowadays in the wine market, Marlborough Sauvingnon Blanc is related to Cloudy Bay.
However, Cloudy Bay's Sauvingnon Blanc is not just about fruity and lively stile. The Te Koko 2004 ($40), a version «growing up» of the Sauvy (as Sauvingnon Blanc is called by the locals) is released as an aged wine (3 years in the cellar).
Te Koko is a full-bodied version, carefully made and, it was the best surprise in the prestigious named place.
Last but not least, it was Saint Clair a rising star in Marlborough sky.
SAINT CLAIR
The winery won the trophy for the Best New Zealand Producer, at the International Wine and Spirit Competition 2005, in London.
It deserves the prize, for the results of the work; wine of course; and the process in the winery and vineyard. From what I saw and tasted during the visit, added to what I learned from one of its workers, they seem to be passionate, honest and to keen on sharing their knowledge and commitment with all levels of staff, including giving them the opportunity to taste different wines in order to know what they are helping to make.
Saint Clair Estate produces a wide range of varieties, including Sauvignon Blanc (surprise, surprise!), Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Noir and Merlot, available in four ranges of wines at varying price levels ($16-$28). A Viogner is also a recent addition to the range.
Each of these wines is made with fruit from specific vineyard sites in the region, specially selected for their ability to produce wines of uncompromising quality and character.
It has five vineyards in different areas in Marlborough, including the Rapaura, Omaka and Awatere valleys, as well as a new site for Sauvingnon Blanc in Benmorven. These wide choices in Marlborough vineyard sites allow Saint Clair to specialize its plantings by grape variety to the sub-regions that provide the most suitable ‘terroir’ for each.
It shows that to identify’ terroir’ is becoming a fact in Marlborough winemaking. The question is: Will the market pay for this distinction to «New Word wines»? Let’s wait and allow the market to talk by itself.
In my case, I already spoke: I left the place with a bottle of Saint Clair, Pinot Noir 2005, Pioneer Block 4 Sawcut ($23), which was very much appreciated with a meal in the following day - that is new world style: wine is made to be consumed shortly.
Our troupe ended the wine trail for the day, mainly because there was none winery opened at that stage. But I was not done yet: I could not leave Marlborough without visiting the winery from which I discovered the liquid treasures of New Zealand – when I was still living in UK and had in the glasses of Montana Sauvignon Blanc the memories of tropical flavors, reminding my homeland.
So, in the next weekend, in a cold rainy Saturday, I walked 5 km to reach the biggest winery in the country: Montana.
MONTANA, Brancott Winery
The business is located in the main highway south of Blenheim and includes a multi-million-dollar restaurant and visitor centre that has became an almost compulsory stop for tourists – included myself.
Montana, now part of the French-owned Pernod Ricard group, revolutionized the New Zealand wine industry in 1973 when planted its first vines in Marlborough, a region overlooked by winemakers, which was sheep and cattle farming territory.
Today Montana is by far the biggest wine producer in Marlborough and it is a good example of the way New Zealand approaches the business: praising its own territory and finding its own innovative solutions to deal with problems. It has high technology developed by their professionals to solve their needs.
This is the manner that a beautiful island, isolated in the South Pacific (as the Kiwis use to refer their country) found to generate a revolution in the wine business: looking around, to their own environment, resources and... towards ahead.
Bye for now!
Marcia Amaral