New Zealand Wine: Marlborough – Part 1
By James Suckling
Marlborough was the fourth stop on our New Zealand wine journey. One of the epicenters of wine in New Zealand and the world, this relatively young wine region has grown extensively in a short period of time. Marlborough’s first vineyard was planted almost a hundred years ago by a Scotsman. However it wasn’t until the 1970s when a single variety, Sauvignon Blanc, caught the eye of the world.
The distinctive and intense style that emerged from the area developed a life of its own. The wines are now drunk worldwide and although Marlborough is a relatively young wine producing area – in terms of the wine world – it has firmly established itself in the vocabulary of wine lovers. Its unique combination of intense light and moderate cool climate in synergy with multiple soils has been, as in most cases, essential in the creation of this region.
Marlborough is also the largest wine-producing region in New Zealand. After establishing itself mainly with Sauvignon Blanc, the region has also evolved into a polyphony of different styles of aromatic whites, as well as found its own voice in the NZ Pinot Noir panorama. Our visit to Marlborough and what you will see in these videos explores these themes: single vineyard Sauvignon Blanc, excellent Pinot Noirs and amazing Syrahs. We visited four producers: Dog Point, Greywacke, Fromm and Cloudy Bay.
In this first video, James met with Ivan Sutherland, co-founder and winemaker at Dog Point, as well as with Kevin Judd, founder and winemaker at Greywacke, who is also a gifted photographer of New Zealand’s vineyards.
View the video at jamessuckling.com (subscription required).