The Future of Marlborough Pinot Noir is Bright

Many winemakers and grape growers in Marlborough will admit that getting consumers to identify with Pinot Noir from this region has been a tough ask. Why? Because mention Marlborough to wine consumers and their first thought is Sauvignon Blanc.

For the first 20 years of Pinot plantings in the region, there was very little understanding of just what the best conditions were for the variety. Many Pinot Noir vines were planted alongside Sauvignon Blanc vineyards, in the hope they would provide equally special wines. Nothing could have been further from the truth and these days the Pinot vines have migrated to the hillsides with clay soil profiles.

But as Dog Point owner Ivan Sutherland says, that didn’t start happening until the early 2000’s.

“We started well behind Martinborough and Central Otago with our attention to detail about what was needed to make quality Pinot Noir. Mainly because we were so busy with Sauvignon Blanc. We had to gain a recognition that particularly the Southern Valleys with their clay soils, slower ripening, the ability to utilise the whole season was the right place for Pinot. It has been a learning experience, but one that has been advantageous for the industry.”

Owner and winemaker for Zephyr, Ben Glover, says Marlborough Pinot Noir is uniquely different to Pinot from other New Zealand regions.

“It’s the effervescence of Marlborough to me, that stands out. It has really bright notes on the nose, but there is a very strong cherry-based factor. And cherries can be white, dark, drunken, brooding and spicy – and I think that is Marlborough Pinot Noir to a tee. We have a lovely tannin structure and the lovely bright acidity carries the wine through the palate.”

Both Ivan and Ben say vine age plays a major role in ensuing quality Pinot Noir, and Marlborough is just now reaping the benefits of those early plantings around the turn of the millennium.

“If you want to relate it to humans, older vines are more relaxed,” Ben says. “They are comfortable in their own skins, there is no ego. There is more depth to the wine and they are not as abundantly fruity. You get more weight through the palate, so you start talking about minerality.”

Both men believe the future for Marlborough Pinot is bright, although they admit they have to educate the consumer to the unique differences and special qualities.

It’s something that Clos Henri winemaker Damien Yvon agrees with. Established by the generations old Sancerre company Henri Bourgeois, Clos Henri is the result of wanting to look outside France for a site that would provide comparable wines to those being produced in France. Damien says there was so much to like about Marlborough for the Bourgeois family. The soil, the climate, the people and the ability to make fine wines convinced them Marlborough was the best site.

“Marlborough has the ability to make these very elegant wines. They may not be the most powerful wines, but they have got a lot of strength. That is what appealed to them (the Bourgeois family).”

Since arriving in Marlborough in 2006 Damien says the quality of our Pinot Noirs has grown exponentially. “It is only getting better,” he says. “And I think it is getting better as more people are becoming passionate about it. People are tending to be quite fanatical about viticulture when it comes to Pinot and I think that is why it is getting better.”

But he along with Ivan and Ben says the region needs to educate, educate, educate the consumer. “The future is bright as long as we educate the consumer about the differences in terms of style. Once we educate them that Pinot can be quite different in four or five regions of New Zealand, equally great but in different ways, then we will win the battle.”