Marlborough was riding high until the 2008 vintage. They couldn’t make Sauvignon Blanc quickly enough. Then, a record crop coupled with an economic downturn suddenly saw an oversupply situation, which it is still struggling to pull itself out of.
Along came the cut price deals to get rid of stock: £3.99 for a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was previously unheard of; the shelves have since been full of discounted SB. Surely this has damaged the industry’s once premium image? Off the record, producers will admit that it has been a kick in the teeth and the region as a whole will suffer but they won’t be quoted on it.
Everyone you speak to here is positive that the supply-demand balance will come back within the not-too distant future since the global recession will sort the wheat from the chaff.
Ivan Sutherland, winemaker at Dog Point says, “There were many plantings in the Boondocks that should not have – with climates and soils that were unsuitable and the market will force them to drop out of the industry.â€
There isn’t much more room left to plant in the current wine growing regions of the Wairau and Awatere Valleys and what is left isn’t particularly attractive. Stuart Smith, owner of Fairhill Downs and also chairman of New Zealand Winegrowers took time out from his staff Christmas barbecue to chat to me about the situation. “Marlborough is almost completely planted and we have little room. What is left is on the margins and it’s likely that the won’t be able to have consistent yields.â€
It will take another year or so to get over the overhang from 2008, according to Smith and he believes the days of cheap bulk Sauvignon from Marlborough, lapped up by the supermarkets for cheap own label brands, are numbered – mainly because there’s no profit to be had.
I hope it’s true that Marlborough’s discount derby will come to an end soon. I suspect that it will be some time before that happens. Meanwhile, top quality producers like Framingham and Huia, who are doing great things, will have to fight harder to distance themselves from the Marlborough that many supermarket shoppers have come to know.
