While many parts of Marlborough are planted out to the max, drive 50 minutes down the coast from Blenheim towards the whale-watching hub of Kaikoura. You’ll hit a small place called Kekerengu. It’s still technically Marlborough but this place is quite different to the two main Marlborough valleys: the Awatere and Wairau.
The vineyards sit right on the coast and some isolated grape growers are producing fruit for wineries including Montana and Astrolabe. There’s likely to be more vintage variation here compared to the Awatere and Wairau and arriving at the vineyard just two hours after 120km/hr winds swept through it, there’s certainly tough conditions to fight. A few of the vines looked a bit sorry for themselves after the gusts.
There are pockets of limestone soils on the terraces where Pinot Noir is planted while the Sauvignon Blanc is planted on gravels down on the flats by the river. Sitting right by the ocean, there are also plans to plant Albarino (the real stuff, not the Savignan imposter) and Astrolabe is high up on the waiting list for vine material. The climate’s not too far away from the home of Albarino (Rias Baixas and Vinho Verde on Spain and Portugal’s Atlantic coast). In theory, it’s a great idea to try it out.
Fruit from its Kekerengu vineyard has been bottled as a single vineyard wine by Astrolabe under its Discovery Range. The 2009 Sauvignon Blanc is lean with lots of elderflower and citrus rather than peapod or passion fruit although the acid’s a little eye-watering. The Pinot Gris is also minerally and lean with balanced alcohol (13.5%) but I think the vines need a bit more time for both whites to achieve more structure and length. I’ll be interested to try the Pinot Noir when it’s ready.
