New Zealand Wine Overview

Presentation to Carljohansvern Vinselskab, Horten

25 October, 2012Klaus Møller

Presentation Summary

• Impact of Sauvignon Blanc

• Acclaim for other varieties

• Review of some of New Zealand’s greatest varietal wines :– Aromatics (Riesling)

– Sauvignon Blanc

– Pinot Noir

– Syrah

New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc Wows the World!

“No previous wine had shocked thrilled, offended and entranced the world before”

- Oz Clarke (UK)

"Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc has become arguably the world's only great new wine style this century”

- Huon Hooke, The Age (Australia)

“ New Zealand has shown that it just might make the world’s best Sauvignon Blanc”

- Charles Laverick, Restaurant Hospitality (USA)

Much More Than Just Sauvignon Blanc

Merlot6%

Cab.Sav2% Riesling

4%

Pinot Gris4%

Pinot Noir18%Sauvignon

Blanc42%

Chardonnay16%

Other8%

More than 25 different varieties planted

International Acclaim for Other Varieties

“New Zealand excels beyond Sauvignon Blanc. The country can produce distinctive wines from diverse selection of grapes” Paul Lukacs, Washington Times

How can we produce such a wide range of distinctive wines?

Great Terroir = Key

1. Climate 2. Soils 3. People

• 1,600km from nearest landmass .• Coastal vineyards in rain shadow-

long sunshine hours (average 2200 annually), sea breezes and cool nights.

• Long ripening period – develops great acid/fruit balance.

• Wine regions span latitudes of 34 and 47 degrees.

• Great diversity - aids a wide range of wine styles.

1. Climate - Temperate, Maritime

2. Soils – Young &Volcanic

• NZ = last landmass to be discovered and therefore the youngest country on earth.

• Youth of the land means NZ has enormous variety of soils – still in the throes of being weathered by climate and vegetation.

• Wine regions mainly established on young soils (most are less than 10,000 years old) of silt, sand, gravel and stonier alluvial soils, deposited by flowing water across the coastal flood plains.

3. People – not bound by tradition

• Young & Dynamic• From mid-1970s. • Exports up from NZ$166 million in

2000 to a billion NZ dollars in 2009.

• Innovative • Trellising and canopy-management.• Use of stainless steel.• Screwcap movement (now 95% of all

NZ wine in screwcap).

• Quality-focused • Continually achieve highest average

price in UK market.

• Environmentally-focused• World-leading sustainable programme.• Goal of being 100% sustainable by

2012.

NZ Aromatics Review

• Pinot Gris 1,501 hectares– Hawke’s Bay 24%– Marlborough 36%– Central Otago 10%

Plantings 2009

• Gewürztraminer : 311 hectares– Gisborne 35%– Hawke’s Bay 18%– Marlborough 27%

• Riesling 979 hectares– Nelson 6%– Marlborough 46%– Waipara/Canterbury 29%

Key Regions for Aromatics

Riesling

• 90% from South Island regions with cool, long, dry, sunny autumns and large diurnal variance.

• Stony, gravelly sites favoured to enhance minerality.

• In the vineyard - careful canopy management to ensure low yields and avoid rot. (Moderate Yields 8 –10 tonnes/hec).

• In the winery - harvest for ripe flavours at low Brix.

• Stainless steel fermentation and manage skin contact for desired style.

Climate

Soils

People

Forrest ”The Doctor’s” Marlborough Riesling 2011

- This deliberately low-alcohol style is like biting

into a fresh, crunchy granny Smith apple. The

2010 vintage is deliciously light (8.5% alcohol)

and lively, with plentiful sweetness (42 grams

per litre of residual sugar), and fresh, strong,

lemon and lime flavours, showing lovely

delicacy and poise.

- Four and a Half Stars (2010 Vintage)

- NOK 160

Marlborough

NZ Sauvignon Blanc Review

Marlborough – 84%

13,988 hectares planted.

Marlborough dominates plantings

Sauvignon Blanc

Hawke’s Bay – 6%

Plantings 2009

Sauvignon Blanc• Over 80% from Marlborough - maritime,

vineyards in east-facing river valleys in rain shadow. Large diurnal variance. Awatere sub-region cooler and more windy than Wairau Valley & Southern Valleys.

• Mainly grown on infertile, alluvial soils. Vary from big river stones to fine silt in Wairau Valley, semi-infertile alluvial of Southern Valleys and more free-draining alluvial silt in Awatere.

• In vineyard – trellising & canopy management to control vigour and promote ripeness.

• In winery most cold-fermented in stainless steel to retain vibrancy and flavour. Small amount have oak fermentation, time on yeast lees etc to add complexity.

Climate

Soils

People

Cloudy Bay Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc

- New Zealand’s most internationally acclaimed

wine is sought after from Sydney to New York

and London. Its irresistably aromatic and zesty

style and intense flavours stem from the fruit

characters that are in the grapes when they

arrive at the winery. The juice is mostly cool-

fermented in stainless steel tanks and aged for

up to two months on its yeast lees before

bottling.

- The 2011 vintage was harvested over a

month, at an average of 22.5 brix, and a

small proportion of the blend was fermented

in old French oak barriques. A weighty, dry

wine, finely textured, it has fresh, ripe

passionfruit, melon, capsicum and lime

flavours that build across the palate to a

resounding finish. A sophisticated – rather

than ”full-on”, pungently herbaceous – style

of Sauvignon Blanc, it has great finesse and

drinkability.

- Five Stars

- Super Classic Status

- NOK 225

NZ Pinot Noir Review

Nelson – 5 %

Marlborough – 42%

4, 240 hectares of table Pinot Noir

Five key regions for Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir

Wairarapa/

Martinborough– 11%

Canterbury/ Waipara - 10%Central Otago 29%

Plantings 2009

Pinot Noir

• Favours cooler regions with sunny, dry autumns with low humidity.

• Prefers older, more complex free draining soils with clay deposits.

• Clone selection & rootstock selection.• Planting density & canopy

management.• Harvest date & hand harvesting.• Fermentation & maturation techniques.

Climate

Soils

People

Yealands Way Pinot Noir 2010

- The 2010 vintage is a generous , savoury silky

red with full, bright colour and substantial body.

Already enjoyable but well worth cellaring, it has

strong, plummy, slightly spicy flavours, gentle

tannins and good complexity.

- Four Stars (2010) – Otherwise Three and a Half

Stars

- NOK 155

Villa Maria Cellar Selection Pinot Noir 2009

- Typically a delightful wine, this is often Nw

Zealands’s best-value Pinot Noir. It is hand-

picked, fermented partly with indigenous

yeasts, and matured in French oak barriques.

Densely coloured, the 2009 vintage is weighty,

vibrant and sweet-fruited, with concentrated,

ripe cherry and plum flavours and a subtle

seasoning of oak. A tight, youthful wine, it is

firm and spicy, with fresh acidity, good intensity

and length.

- Five Stars

- Potential Classic Status

- NOK 200

NZ Syrah Review

Northland/ Auckland 15%

290 hectares

Mainly found in warmer regions of Hawkes Bay and Auckland

Syrah

Hawke’s Bay – 68%

Plantings 2009

• Favours sunny, warm, maritime climates. Moderate rainfall- dry in autumn.

• Syrah grown on low vigour site to achieve canopy/fruit balance.

• In vineyard, original French clone used , plus now Chave, 174 and 470.

• In winery , strong leaning towards winemaking methods similar to those used for Pinot Noir.. Blending – use of viognier.

Climate

Soils

People

Syrah

Mills Reef Elspeth Syrah 2009

- In top vintages, this has been one of Hawke’s

Bay’s greatest Syrahs. The 2009 vintage, estate-

grown and hand-picked in the Mere Road

Vineyard, in the Gimblett Gravels, was matured

for 16 months in large French oak casks, which

give a more refined style of Syrah. Highly

perfumed and supple, it has fresh, deep plum and

black-pepper flavours, with a subtle seasoning of

oak, and good tannin support.

- Four and a Half Stars (2009) – otherwise Five

Stars

- Classic Status

- NOK 280

The Future70% of vines in NZ are 10 years old or less.

With maturing vines, optimum site selection for

new plantings and continued fine-tuning ofvineyard/winemaking techniques, you can be

sure…the best is yet to be discovered!