The sustainable truth
Wednesday 3 February
Sustainability? I could do with some of that right now after plenty of tasting, lots of good food and not enough sleep. Ah well, the dangers of a Pinot conference.
I have always been a bit of a sceptic when it comes to sustainability – isn’t it just for those who want to be seen as green but can’t be arsed to fill in all the paperwork for organic or biodynamic certification?
There seems to be a growing acceptance of sustainability in the wine industry but what is it? I think the strapline should be “Sustainability – ensuring there will be a next generation.” It’s basically ensuring you don’t annihilate the land you work on and making certain it’s still fit for the next generation of grape growers to make decent wine and a decent living.
New Zealand, South Africa and Chile are hot on the sustainability message and it’s an under-utilised marketing tool, according to American Doug Bell, global wine buyer for Whole Foods. “If you can give people a reason to buy the product, you have won their dollars or euros. Sustainable attributes will set you apart from competitors,” he told delegates
“You are leading by example but you have got to market it better,” he added.
He has a point. Who knows what sustainability means? I’m starting to get it but I’ve just spent the day at a conference about it. What are average wine drinkers (i.e normal people not wine journalists) going to make of it?
By making it simple and marketing it better, sustainability could be the next buzzword for wine lovers. However, it was generally agreed that money needs to be spent on promoting it, information on back labels needs to improve and, wineries have to explain sustainability in one line – not five minutes.
Comments of the day
Max Allen, Aussie wine journalist on sustainability: “At a national level Australia’s version of a national assurance scheme is so weak it’s embarrassing.” He also said in 15 years’ time, “Australia will be producing 700,000 tonnes if it’s lucky”. In 2009, the total crush was 1.9m tonnes.
Doug Bell, global wine buyer for Whole Foods tried to encourage more winemaker visits to the US: “The public eats up a winemaker especially if they have a Kiwi accent.”
Andrew Jefford, UK wine writer, “More than 1000 vineyards in New Zealand are certified sustainable but it has not been commercialised well enough. I didn’t know about it properly myself so the average consumer in Tesco won’t know about it either.”
Toilet cleaner truths at #Pinot2010
Tuesday 2 February
If you’re planning on having a conference, stretch the budget to Saatchi & Saatchi’s CEO Kevin Roberts. It may have been 8.30am, an ungodly hour for a wine conference to start, but he managed to wake the industry without the help of caffeine.
The advertising guru certainly gave the industry food for thought when it comes to its image. “You have the most sensual business in the world yet you insist on using packaging that makes it look like toilet cleaner. Following that classic comment up with another criticism of the industry: “Most people have websites that bore you into submission,” he said. Sad but probably true.
He also called on the New Zealand government to get behind the industry with funding to back the New Zealand wine ‘brand’ to make it a ‘Lovemark’, meaning a brand that is both respected and loved, eg the ipod. You could buy another MP3 player, he argued, but you don’t because Steve Jobs and the clever people at Apple have created a cult following. The Kiwi wine industry needs to do the same thing.
Instead of Pure New Zealand, he also suggested ‘Made with Love in New Zealand’ should be its new strapline. Hmmm, not so keen on that one. Maybe we could take a poll on that.
I wouldn’t have wanted to be the one to follow Roberts but UK journalist Matthew Jukes did a pretty good job. Following the pretty average 2007 and 2008 vintages in Burgundy, he claimed New Zealand has the chance to attract a new legion of Pinot followers, particularly in the UK. “You have a long time gap between now and the release of the 2009 Burgundy vintage. There is a window of opportunity and it is only going to happen once so don’t stuff it up,” he said.
Less talk, more tasting
The morning’s 2007 blind tasting was an interesting chance to identify regional differences. The Central Otago Pinots were pretty easy to pick from the blind line-up for their powerful structure, dense fruity core, dried herb note and lovely line of acidity. While I picked the two Marlborough Pinots in the line up, it was mainly because they were fruit forward but lacked structure and length. Biodynamic Pinot producer Mike Weersing of Pyramid Valley (see previous blog on Pyramid) pointed out he doesn’t look to make a wine that reflects regionality but his individual terroir. But that’s an argument for another day.
The 2003 line up this afternoon was a bit disappointing. The tannins had dried out on most wines and the acid and oak were sticking out like a sore thumb. The 2003 Felton Road Block 5, Pegasus Bay and Rippon Estate seemed to be standing the test of time better than the rest. Neal Martin, a UK-based reviewer for Robert Parker, had the honesty and guts to stand up and tell the room of 400 delegates what he thought. I wish I had had the balls to get up and say it but I’ve saved it for my blog. There’s less chance of getting something thrown at me.
Wine of the day
This was a toss up between two 2007 Central Otago Pinots - Valli vs Peregrine.
Both would easily get a gold medal and 18.5+ but I’ve plumped for the Valli. What’s so good about it? It has great depth of colour with plum, cherry and signature Central Otago dried herbs. It’s silky in the mouth with a lovely chalky texture on the finish and a vibrant line of acidity. While some NZ Pinots lack structure, this isn’t one of them and the 14% alcohol is beautifully integrated.