Third Time’s a Charm for Champion Rosé
Third Time’s a Charm for Champion Rosé
Image: Richard Briggs Photography
Whitehaven’s Kōparepare Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2022 has been crowned Scenic Hotel Marlborough Champion Rosé at the 2022 Marlborough Wine Show, sponsored by QuayConnect.
Kōparepare Brand Ambassador Samantha White says it was the third year in a row that the wine had taken out a gold medal at the Show. To get the trophy was an added bonus.
“To achieve this consistency and win the trophy this year is testament to the efforts of the whole team, from the vineyard, to the winery and through to the bottling line. We’re all thrilled with the result,” she says.
Whitehaven’s Kōparepare wines are used to help the company do good, with money from each bottle sold donated to LegaSea, a non-profit organisation dedicated to restoring the abundance, biodiversity and health of New Zealand’s marine environment.
Made with 100% Pinot Noir, the team aims to produce a generous, flavourful and approachable Rosé immediately from release, says Senior Winemaker Diana Katardzhieva.
“In 2022, fruit for this wine was sourced exclusively from our Little Alfred vineyard in the Omaka Valley. It’s a picturesque and impressive site, and as the vines grow up, the fruit quality is getting better and better. Attention to detail in the winery, ensuring the wine is beautifully poised and precise is what we pride ourselves on.”
Marlborough has the ability to produce fantastic Rosé, thanks to the same conditions that make it a great place to grow classy, cooler climate wines across the board, Diana says.
“[We have] A combination of conditions that allow flavour development while retaining freshness and purity, which is very much what we’re looking for with our Rosé,” she says.
“Looking back over the last 15 years, the styles of Rosé produced in Marlborough have changed markedly. Today, we’re producing a much paler wine and we’re trying to pull back on too much sweet fruit, incorporating a savouriness where we can, while looking for a dry, refreshing and mouth-watering finish.”
Diana, Samantha and their team thoroughly enjoyed the Marlborough Wine Show Lunch in late October, where they were able to celebrate their win with industry colleagues and the team from trophy sponsor Scenic Hotel Marlborough.
“We were very impressed with the Show, and it was wonderful to see the turnout from the industry. It’s fantastic having a wine show to celebrate the brilliance of our winemakers and viticulturists in Marlborough,” she says.
Scenic Hotel Marlborough has been involved with the show for many years as a way of giving back to an industry that makes the region so diverse and dynamic.
General Manager Carmel Horsley says they are particularly excited to sponsor the Rosé trophy.
“Over the years that we have sponsored this trophy there have been a great variety of wineries that have been awarded the top accolade and it is an honour to be able to become a small part of their story,” she says.