Consumers know Marlborough makes high quality, easy to drink Sauvignon Blanc but if you asked consumers to point to it on a map, it would be a pin the tail on the donkey exercise.
The latest research on the significance of region of origin by Wine Intelligence shows that at mainstream price points (£4 to £4.99) Marlborough, the Barossa Valley and Napa all feature in the top five regions from which UK consumers say they are likely to buy wine. Marlborough and the Barossa are still among the top choices when the same question is posed for purchases of £8 and above. So far so good.
Although prompted awareness of Marlborough is relatively low, consumers have a favourable view of New Zealand and say Marlborough wines are high quality, easy to drink and often recommended by friends. They are also more likely to be available in casual restaurants.
Research director Jean Philippe Perrouty said: “Bordeaux and Burgundy are known by 90% of UK consumers but only one in four or less say they would buy it. UK consumers say they are more willing to buy Marlborough, Rioja or Barossa - if they have heard of them - than Bordeaux or Burgundy. These wines have been able to create the perception of affordable quality.”
Still so far so good.
However, when it comes to knowing where Marlborough is or what the region is like, you’ll get a blank look. Many US consumers associate cigarettes with the region. How positive. Nevertheless it’s a similar story for Chianti, which conjures up images of Italy, red and Hannibal Lector.
Beyond country of origin, it seems most regions are failing to portray an effective image.
So where now?
Tourism is key. If you can get people to visit, they become ambassadors for the region. And it just so happens 85,000 people are heading this way for a few rugby matches in September.
Longer term, Marlborough should be shouting to the rooftops about tourism and food. The Marlborough Sounds are breathtaking, tell people about them. There’s great walking, mountain biking, and fishing on your doorstep. Plus, there are a wealth of artisan producers, from oyster farms, to pine nut orchards and cheese makers.
The Barossa has employed the skills of Paul Henry, ex general manager Wine Australia, to educate consumers that there’s more to the South Australian region than burly Shiraz. Perhaps Marlborough should be doing the same.
An obsession among “new world” wine producers is to compare their wines to their European equivalents. Around the winemaking fraternity, you hear producers comparing their sauvignon blancs to the Loire. Cobblers, I say. If it’s from Marlborough then it should taste like it’s from Marlborough.
There’s no denying the most famous sauvignon blancs in the world have come from the Loire around the villages of Sancerre and Pouilly Fume (pronounced Poo-ee Fu-may). That’s why comparisons are drawn. But the Loire is largely ignored for its greatest contribution to the white wine world: chenin blanc.
Poor old chenin blanc. It would definitely be fighting with riesling to be my favourite white grape variety but walk down any wine aisle, and chenin does not even make the bridesmaid grade.
The Loire and South Africa lead the chenin blanc crusade. New Zealand actually makes a few good chenins each year but there are a paltry 47ha planted compared to 17,000ha of sauvignon blanc. Even pinotage, which is a candidate for the worst variety in the world award, is more planted than delicious chenin. What an injustice.
Chenin blanc makes wines that smell of crisp green apples, hay and lanolin in youth, and with time in the bottle, those aromas change to honey, quince and brioche.
The wines can be anywhere from sparkling to still, dry to sweet, but whatever the style, the variety is always characterised by a lovely weight on the middle of your palate and zingy acidity.
It’s also one of the few white wines that benefit from a little bit of in-bottle ageing.
2008 Farmgate Chenin Blanc, Hawke’s Bay, $21.95
This must be the only bottle of wine in New Zealand that has the photo of a German man holding a loaf of bread. It seems a bit quirky that a local baker rather than the wine producer is on the label. Nevertheless, this is a delicious combination of apple sauce and marzipan flavours with an appetising creamy texture and ripe acidity on the finish.
2008 Millton Te Arai Vineyard Chenin Blanc, Gisborne, $31-$32, Fine Wine Delivery, Regional Wines & Spirits
A shimmering golden colour draws you into the rich, honeyed, mandarin and nutty nose. Seamless in the mouth with mouthwatering acidity and savoury notes on the finish.
2008 Baumard Clos St Yves, Savennieres, $38.50, Maison Vauron
This wine is all about texture. Creamy on the middle of the palate with crisp acidity, which leaves a minerally, sucking-on-stones sensation on the length. There’s an earthy, lanolin-like character with delicately balanced alcohol.
This article was published in the NZ Herald on Sunday on 3 April. To view it online click here
William Hoare, GM of Fromm in Marlborough, takes a break from the 2011 vintage and has his turn on Unfiltered. Why are they making Syrah in Marlborough and what is his fascination with Martinborough winemaker Larry McKenna?!
The 2011 harvest in New Zealand is underway and it look like it’ll be a record beating 310,000 tonnes.
The industry’s marketing body, New Zealand Winegrowers, is putting a positive spin on this, pointing out bottled wine exports are growing beyond initial forecasts but this sort of bumper crop is exactly what it has been trying to avoid.
Stock levels seem to be coming back into balance, according to one Auckland broker. “Producers don’t have any spare Sauvignon Blanc. A year ago there was about 30 million litres of it floating around and now there’s none.”
Around 18 months ago, you could pick up a litre of NZ Sauvignon Blanc for as little as $1.85 (it probably didn’t taste great, admittedly) whereas it’s now up to $3-3.25, according to members of the industry, which indicates that excess supplies have been largely drained.
Finally, the industry is starting to see light at the end of the tunnel but this vintage could see that light extinguished. The next two months will be crucial.
Homeless wine?
You have to wonder if there are enough machine harvesters, presses and tanks to cope with a crop of 310,000 tonnes.
Back in 2008, when the harvest was a record 285,000, the infrastructure failed to cope. Is there anywhere to put an extra 25,000 tonnes of fruit? And what happens if the weather turns ugly towards the end of the season, and everyone wants to get their grapes in before rot kicks in? Good luck finding a machine to harvest it and a tank to put it in.
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