Take a bunch of Master of Wine students, add a week of seminars and then give them a quiz at the end. Inevitably, brain cells will be fried and confidence battered but they should be able to name the four major wine producing regions of New Zealand’s South Island, right?
Wrong! And this is the worry. It took yours truly, a New Zealand resident to remind everyone that Waipara/North Canterbury existed. Marlborough, Central Otago and Nelson were all ticked off without worry but the fourth region – what could it be?
If this is the state of play for Master of Wine students, who should have a mastery of wine general knowledge at their fingertips before even embarking upon the course, then where the hell is Waipara/North Canterbury for the rest of the wine drinking population? And herein lies the problem.
Which is a shame, because they make some pretty good booze. I’ve been impressed by the aromatic whites in the past – particularly the Rieslings (most notably Pegasus Bay) and even (God forbid) Pinot Gris.
With wine conference Pinot 2013 on the horizon, and a free day in earthquake-damaged Christchurch over the Christmas period, a quick trip up to Waipara, just an hour’s drive north seemed timely.
So, off I went up State Highway 1 – the country’s major road, which has just one lane for the majority of its length. Astounding but not altogether unsurprising when you consider there are just over 4 million people living in New Zealand.
Waipara might not be as well known as it might like to be but Pinot Noir lovers should be keeping a watchful eye on a number of its producers.
Waipara Pinot Noir has been characterized by “greater barnyard, herbal and violet aromas and in-mouth fruit density/concentration” in Elizabeth Tomasino’s thesis on New Zealand Pinot Noir, which is part of her doctorate at local university Lincoln.
To some extent that is true. Sitting half-way-ish between Marlborough and Central Otago, its Pinots have a density somewhere between a serious Marlborough Pinot and a butch Central Otago style. The herbal and violet character are certainly apparent throughout the wines of the region and there are a large number that are savoury.
But the picture isn’t that simple.
Waipara has three main soil types: Glasnevin gravels, Glenmark glacial clays and limestone-derived clays.
The gravels are free-draining, low-in-nutrient, bony soils in the southern part of the Waipara Valley. They could be compared to the gravels in Marlborough – both are former river beds. The Pinot styles from this area are lighter in style with juicy, fruit-forward appeal. There’s little structure, hardly any tannin and would be best served chilled a la Beaujolais. A couple of producers including Pegasus Bay and Bellbird Spring are making more serious styles but these soils just don’t give a burly structure.
The most exciting area in Waipara, in my opinion, seems to be in an area known as Omihi, north of the small town of Waipara. The vineyards are on slopes – which is relatively unusual for New Zealand – facing north and north-west. The soils here are limestone-derived clays. You can see the white limestone outcrops at the top of the hills and these have eroded over time to produce clays. The higher you go up the hills, the greater the limestone content in your soil; further down the slopes, the clay content increases. These soils are giving a greater density, weight and savoury character to the producers’ wines, which you don’t find in the fruit grown on the gravels less than 10km away.
The Glenmark glacial clays around the township of Waipara – which you certainly couldn’t call glamorous – produce a style that is a halfway house between the Glasnevin gravels and limestone-derived clays of Omihi.
Picks of my regional tasting 27/12.
2010 Pegasus Bay Pinot Noir (Glasnevin gravels)
Fragrant feminine nose, herbal and violet character with a touch of pencil lead. Light bodied style with good fruit concentration, fine acidity and fine tannin providing some grip. Smoky oak supports the fruit. 17.5
2009 Mountford The Rise (Omihi)
Perfumed: plum, violets and red cherry with a hint of VA in a good way. Shows good mid palate weight and a very fine line of acidity. Taut mineral finish – could it be the limestone? 18
2010 Crater Rim Coronary Hill (Omihi)
Not a great gift for those with a dicky ticker but this Pinot certainly shows potential. Dense and brooding, savoury. Tightly wound at this stage and unwilling to give up its fruit easily. High level of fruit concentration with smoky oak supporting the whole. 18
-With thanks to Black Estate for hosting the tasting and the Waipara tiki-tour. Its 2010 Omihi Series Pinot Noir floats my boat too. Good stuff.
