New Zealand Wines

With its free draining stony soils, long hours of sunshine, dryish summers, high luminosity, and warm days refreshed by cold nights, the Marlborough area still dominates the Kiwi scene.

About 90% of all the Sauvignon in the country is grown there. However even within Marlborough Sauvignon comes in a wide range of styles, probably broader than, say, Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire. One can find a spectrum from the steely to the tropical, from almost spritzily bright to silky and smooth, and the occasional oaked example.

New Zealand is also a source of top quality Chardonnay, from Central Otago and Hawkes Bay. Likewise recent years have seen increasing success - now that the vines are older - with the so-called "Alsace" varieties, Pinot Gris and Riesling in particular.