Martinborough's Finest

The special character of Martinborough’s Pinot Noir is created by no one factor. A unique blend of location, soil and climate all contribute to the quality of the wines from Martinborough. Martinborough is located in a rain shadow with naturally breezy conditions. Most of the vineyards sit on a 20,000-year-old dry riverbed with mineral-laden soils. The cool climate results in low yields and allows for cool night and warm days over many months, which builds depth and intensity of flavor with finely textured tannins. These conditions not only create spectacular Pinot Niors with excellent concentration and texture but also distinctly fruity Sauvignon Blancs, aromatic and mineral Rieslings and elegant Chardonnays.

Te Muna Road Vineyard

Comparisons can be made to Burgundy, the classic home of Pinot Noir. Not only do Martinborough’s Pinots have the ripe cherry fruit components of a typical New World Pinot Noirs but also a savory and earthy quality traditionally associated with the great Pinots of Burgundy. One of the best examples of the region is 2011 Block B Pinot Noir from Schubert Wines. This wine has many layers, intense red cherry flavors with hints of herbs initially followed by savory spices and mushrooms with soft tannins, fine concentration and a fresh splash of acidity. 

At $40 per bottle, Schubert Block B Pinot Noir is better priced than most Burgundies and has the aging potential with the best of them. It has a wide range of food pairing possibilities and can go well with roasted or braised pork belly to chicken in a mushroom cream sauce to poached salmon.

The owners and winemakers of Schubert Wines, Kai Schubert and Marion Deimling have traveled the world in search for the best Pinot Noir site and they chose New Zealand over Oregon, California and Australia. The winemakers explored over 100 properties in New Zealand before settling in Martinborough in 1998. Their efforts were well worth it and their Pinots have out ranked many worldly competitors. In 2010, Schubert Wines’ 2008 Block B won the International Trophy for best Pinot Noir, beating 19 other countries including many of the world’s most famous wine producers of Burgundy.

The man himself, Kai Schubert, a truly lovely person

Another fine example of Martinborough Pinot Noir is the 2012 Pinot Noir of Poppies. After 12 years of grape growing and making wine at award winning Dry River Wines also located in Martinborough, Poppy and Shayne Hammond left to open their own boutique winery. They continue their same roles with Poppy as the Chief Winemaker and Shayne as the Viticulturist…a wine couple’s ultimate dream. The wine production is small scale and very personal. Shayne manages small plots of old vines while Poppy transforms the grapes into elegant wines. The inaugural 2012 vintage has proven more successful than even they anticipated. All their 2012 wines have sold out except the 2012 Pinot Noir, which they just released in May. The wine is perfectly balanced with clean fruit flavors of fresh cherries and a great mouthfeel.

Shayne has also worked as a chef and creates local seasonal platters to enjoy with their beautifully crafted wines. Not a bad way to spend a sunny afternoon in Martinborough!

The exceptional conditions of Martinborough also share some of the same qualities as the Rheingau region in Germany, which produces world class Rieslings. One of the best Rieslings in Martinborough is from one of the most surprising and interesting producers, Hiroyuki Kusuda. I say surprising because of his unique path into winemaking. Hiro is from Japan and with that said didn’t drink wine until he traveled Europe while on break from law school. He fell in love with wine upon his first introduction but continued to practice law after graduation and kept wine as a hobby. After very successful years of practicing law, he could no longer resist the idea of becoming a winemaker. In 1996 he moved to Germany to learn the language and then started studying Oenology and Viticulture at Geisenheim University the following year. This man learned a third language from his second language! How amazing is that?! An experiment for his thesis brought him to Martinborough where he fell in love the region. After graduation, he moved to Martinborough and started up his own wine label, Kusuda Wines, in 2001.

It was such an amazing experience tasting with Hiro. He welcomed us into his home, gave us slippers to wear [Japanese style as he would say], introduced us to his family and poured wines from his cellar.

Each vintage, Hiro gets about 20 Japanese student volunteers to travel to Martinborough for the honor of working for him and learning his craft. He prides himself on the careful selection of each berry. It is even said that he uses tweezers on the sorting table. He delivers impeccable purity of fruit and place with such finesse. 

Hiro didn't think he could make Riesling in Martinborough but found it a 'pleasant surprise' and so did I! The nose is mirrored on the palate with ample and integrated ripe peaches and apricots with fresh and bright green apple acidity. The fruit and minerality are in perfect harmony...clean, driven and well structured.

Research into its climate and soils has revealed small areas in Martinborough share the same qualities to some of the world’s finest wine regions. The Rhone Valley has many high quality sought after characteristics similar to Martinborough. Martinborough is sited in the driest location on the North Island. The soils of the Martinborough Terrace are alluvial loam layered over very deep gravels, which ensures exceptional drainage and warmer profiles similar to Rhone. The diurnal temperature, hot days and cool nights, allow fruit to ripen slowly and gently. It is a known fact to build depth of flavor takes time and with one of the longest growing seasons [from flowering to harvest] in New Zealand, Martinborough has no trouble with that!

View of the Martinborough Terrace from Escarpment Wines. 

Syrah is the dominant red grape varietal in the Northern Rhone Valley. It is common practice in Cote Rotie to blend Syrah with small amounts of Voignier, the dominant white varietal of the Northern Rhone. Syrah produces some intense and rich wines but blending with Viogner softens the wine both on the nose and palate. One of the best examples of this classic Syrah Viogner blend is made by Martinborough Vineyards and it was a pleasant surprise to find this blend in Martinborough's repertoire. 

The 2009 Syrah Viognier is a lush, spicy and complex yet delicate wine. It has intense aromatics of black pepper, cured meat and dark fruit with a lovely floral lift of violets. The palate is generous and succulent with velvety smooth tannins.