2008 was tricky for much of France and Burgundy was no exception. With a cool, wet spring flowering was not ideal with resulting yields between 5-6% down. Mildew also developed due to the damp conditions and hail also put in an appearance damaging up to 70% of some vineyards. As a generalisation, whites seem to have fared better than reds with Chardonnay cleaner than the Pinot Noir which suffered some botrytis infections, but September saw cool breezes which helped dry the fruit out, before a good warm period that ripened the grapes for vintage. As always in difficult vintages there will be some gems to ferret out.
For a very detailed and useful guide to the vintages of Burgundy (and a whole lot more information on Burgundy in general) click here
LARRY McPINOT'S VIEW
Burgundy 2008
March 26th, 2010
Pinot Noir 2010
March 26th, 2010
Wellington again hosted the NZ version of Pinot Heaven during February. Pinot Noir 2010, the fourth triennial event was a great success with over 400 delegates. The highlight came on the second day when a great tasting of sustainably produced New Zealand Pinot Noirs drew a enormous deal of interest and comment. Jamie Goode (UK) gave a great presentation as part of this tasting and he is well worth following on his twitter page and blog.
The conclusion to the formal sessions was a tasting of Pinot Noirs from France, USA, Australia and NZ. Hosted by Larry it was a chance to decide just how far we have come globally and to taste if we are truly up to the international standards we must achieve. The learned global commentators were generally impressed. The best overall comments perhaps coming from Bob Campbell as quoted by Tim Atkin. Tim felt that out of the 100 plus producers on show 25 were of world class standard. He told Bob Campbell MW about his findings he nodded sagely, “In 2001, there were many dogs and a few stars. Now there are many stars and a few dogs.” Roll on Pinot 2013.
Pinot Noir in the UK
March 26th, 2010
New Zealand Pinot Noir is still enjoying ‘honeymoon status’ in the UK. Only a few years ago it was easy to find NZ Sauvignon Blanc on any wine list but now Pinot Noir has equal billing if not more placements.
Martinborough and Central Otago have led the charge in promoting the variety. The fresh exuberant fruit of Central Otago or the more structured complex wines from Martinborough seem to sit happily side by side on wine lists or retail shelves. Both styles are well received and offer a great choice depending on the food or personal preference.
After a good look at retail stores the wines are expensive compared with the same labels in NZ. Restaurants also work on higher markups than NZ so our Pinot Noirs are again expensive resulting in increased ‘off license’ sales direct to the buyer. The current exchange rate is helping but this is sure to swing back to the pre-crash highs. Answer is to enjoy these wonderful wines in NZ as much as possible.
No trip to this part of the world is complete without visiting a few great London restaurants. We have been lucky enough to have our wines listed at Zuma undoubtedly the best Japanese restaurant outside Japan. A Saturday afternoon was successfully enjoyed at Terroirs Wine Bar which is a must visit for any wine enthusiast. No New World wines here but a very strong organic/biodynamic influence alongside great food. The afternoon was completed watching Ireland beat England in the six nations at a close by pub!
A few days in Edinburgh and Belfast completed the trip allowing Larry to meet our newly appointed distributors in those regions.
Release of the 2008 Insight Series
March 26th, 2010
Here is your chance to purchase some of NZ’s leading Pinot Noirs with the launch of the 2008 Martinborough Insight Series.
For many years, Martinborough winemaker Larry McKenna was fuelled with the desire to craft a Pinot Noir that was purely dedicated to expressing the unique vineyard characteristics, collectively known as terroir, of the Martinborough Terraces. In 2003, treading in the historic footsteps of Burgundy where Larry developed his passion for Pinot Noir, he turned a tiny amount of grapes from his low-yielding Te Muna Road vineyard into what is now one of New Zealand’s most revered wines, Kupe.
From the outstanding 2006 vintage Larry added a further three exceptional sites that he knew offered unique qualities that would shine through the resulting wines. These are Kiwa, Te Rehua and Pahi. Together, these four wines portray the essence of the Martinborough Terraces.
This exclusive range is made from some of the oldest vines in the Martinborough region and offers an authentic reflection of each vineyard’s attributes. This terroir is consistent from vintage to vintage and while it forms the solid foundation and style for each wine, the subtleties of the season add further complexity. Larry then strives to develop the highly desirable hallmarks of ripe fruit, weight and texture which combine to ensure that each of these wines is an outstanding example of site-specific Martinborough Pinot Noir.
KUPE. Created from Escarpment Vineyard’s high density, close-planted vineyard on Te Muna Road, south-east of Martinborough and from a single clone on its own roots, this well-structured wine is more akin to the ‘old world’ style of Pinot. A highly perfumed wine with attractive floral characters, Kupe is at the forefront of Pinot Noir in New Zealand and will age gracefully for ten years or more.
KIWA is made from a blend of clones from vines over 27 years old, grown just to the north-east of Martinborough’s town centre on alluvial loam over alluvial gravels. Slightly more ‘old world’, its hallmarks are to produce a savoury, complex and spicy wine that has become a favourite of the Escarpment wine-making team.
TE REHUA is produced from a vineyard to the north-east of the Martinborough township again from vines over 20 years old. A combination of deep, alluvial gravels and a blend of many clones grown in a very sheltered spot always rewards with a wine of unique site-derived, layered complexity combined with black cherry and plum fruit flavours. A classic example of New World Pinot Noir.
PAHI is grown on one of the oldest Pinot Noir vineyards in the district (planted in 1986) due north of the township. The combination of slightly heavier soils and the single 10/5 clone on its own roots gives a particular style of pure, soft, voluptuous, ripe fruit expression in an exciting New World Pinot Noir.
This range completes the Escarpment collection of Pinot Noir and allows Larry to present unique vintage expressions from each of these sites every year. This in turn gives enthusiasts the opportunity to explore the wines and the distinctive and natural characters of each one, providing interest and enlightenment into the complex world of Pinot Noir. These wines all have tremendous ageing ability and will develop gracefully for at least ten years.
If you would like to purchase any of these wines from the outstanding 2008 vintage, please click here for more information. Please be aware that only very small quantities were produced.
2008 Vintage
A classic for Martinborough. Ideal spring weather in 2007 gave us an idyllic opening to the season with no frost damage. The warm weather produced a successful even bud-burst and heralded a perfect December for flowering. Large crops were set which ultimately needed thinning (green harvest) during January. Some concern was felt around veraison when two weeks of welcome rain fell which luckily didn’t cause any damage. A warmer than average February and March meant picking started about one week early under perfectly dry conditions. The only negative for the whole season was rain during the middle of April but all quality crops of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay were harvested by this time. The distinctive Escarpment style showing complexity, attractive texture and the perfect mix of black, red and green fruit flavours for which Pinot Noir is celebrated is a hallmark of the year.
The 2008 wines will age gracefully for many years and become well loved classics for the district.
Toast Martinborough Tickets
November 5th, 2009
Venture to the Edge with Escarpment
As part of the lead up to Toast Martinborough we are going to give away a double ticket to one lucky person. We will be asking four wine questions; one Friday, one on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday all at about midday. Every time you answer a question correctly you go into the draw. The people on our Twtvite http://twtvite.com/0mbb79 have already been entered and those who select ‘maybe’ on the Twtvite get two entries. Please join if you haven’t already.
We will also give a single ticket away to the best Re-Tweeter promoting the competition announcements and daily questions. So get involved have some fun and we will see you on the 15th at the red and white circus! You can either direct message me the answer @LarryMcPinot or tell the world on twitter or respond on the blog.
The winners will be drawn between 4 and 5 on Wednesday – GOOD LUCK
This is a new blog so excuse its simplicity. We will have it looking great shortly
Cheers for now
Larry