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Church Road: New Zealand wine should to be known for its diversity
Church Road’s chief winemaker Chris Scott tells db Asia why New Zealand is the “small but mighty” hero of today’s wine world.
What’s so special about New Zealand? According to winemaker Chris Scott, one of New Zealand’s most celebrated winemakers, the answer lies in the country’s diversity. Listed as a top 100 Master Winemaker in both 2023 and 2024, Scott knows what he’s talking about when it comes to his home country’s wines.
New Zealand is somewhat of an underdog in today’s wine world. “There’s a tendency to see New Zealand as one, cool climate region with a limited repertoire,” Scott says. But this is entirely short sighted. “That’s a bit like saying France is one wine region,” he argues.
In fact, New Zealand’s two main islands span a range of latitudes equivalent to travelling from northern Burgundy to northern Morocco, “which obviously represents quite a range of growing conditions”.
In terms of soils the country is still “geographically young” compared with Europe. But Scott says understanding its range of growing conditions goes some way towards highlighting the breadth of New Zealand’s wine potential.
“That’s a great starting point to get people to understand why great, internationally accoladed Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Syrah, Cabernet and Merlot can come from a country that is most famous for Sauvignon Blanc,” he says.
New Zealand delivers wines “with a sense of classical structure on the palate”. Scott says the elements of savouriness, minerality and salinity are “reminiscent” of the Old World, but with a vibrancy and freshness that is distinctly kiwi.
But its range in latitude, and therefore growing conditions, also means that each region has something unique to offer.
Church Road has called Hawke’s Bay home since 1897, just 57 years after the country was founded.
Its long winemaking history has no doubt played a part in elevating the area to one of the most well regarded regions in the world. Sitting on the east coast of New Zealand’s north island, Hawke’s Bay was recently recognised as one of 12 Great Wine Capitals of the World, alongside the likes of Bordeaux and Rioja.
Despite the international acclaim, Scott believes there is still work to be done to educate global consumers about the quality of Hawke’s Bay wines.
“We’re a big region with a lot of diversity in topography and soil type,” he says. And the wines coming out of the region are not what many would expect of New Zealand. Cabernet/Merlot blends, Syrah, Tempranillo, Malbec and complex fuller bodied Chardonnay and Viognier are typical of the region. Even its Sauvignon Blanc wines “have more in common with Graves than Marlborough”, Scott says.
The next step for Hawke’s Bay will be to start highlighting its diversity through subregions. “Eventually I think subregions must become much more important to understanding and marketing Hawke’s Bay wine,” he says.
And that’s down to the sheer size of the region itself. Scott explains: “We’re talking about an area that would roughly encompass Eden Valley, Barossa, Adelaide Hills and McClaren Vale in South Australia, with at least as much diversity.”
Scott is not afraid to experiment, and Church Road, with more than a century of history, has a future shaped by experimentation. “You have to maintain an open mind and that sense of curiosity and creativity and be prepared to break all the rules along the way”.
The secret to building an identity that will last? Continuous evolution. “Never take any short cuts,” he says.
Wines to watch
Known best for its Sauvignon Blancs, New Zealand is ready for a new look, and Scott breaks down the grape varieties which are keeping New Zealand’s wine offering interesting:
Chardonnay — “Chardonnay is the white variety that excites me the most,” says Scott, arguing that New Zealand examples are “hugely undervalued versus Burgundy or California”. Great examples are being made in every winegrowing region from Northland all the way down to Central Otago, with those latitudes exhibiting “a range of style, which makes an exploration of New Zealand Chardonnay all the more fascinating”.
Pinot Noir — Most commonly associated with Central Otago, examples of this red grape in other areas are “unfairly overlooked”, according to Scott. “There are terrific wines coming out of Martinborough, Marlborough, Waipara and Waitaki and even some of the cooler parts of Hawke’s Bay, all with quite a regional signature,” he says.
Syrah — Making up less than 1% of plantings, New Zealand Syrah “punches well above its weight” in terms of quality. Scott is particularly impressed by expressions from Hawke’s Bay and Waiheke Island, “where it produces wines that tread a lovely balance between weight and elegance. They’re incredibly aromatic wines, and that gives them a distinctly New Zealand signature.”
Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot — A blend of these two grape varieties are to thank for “perhaps the most serious wines being produced in Hawke’s Bay and Waiheke”, with support from Cabernet Franc, Malbec and in some cases, Petit Verdot. Scott says: “The quality of Cabernet Sauvignon has improved out of sight in New Zealand with better clones and viticultural understanding while the unfairly maligned Merlot is incredibly important too. It is a fickle variety and there are not many places in the world that grow it well. The moderate temperature maritime zones in northern New Zealand are ideal. If treated with respect in the vineyard, it delivers full bodied wines of great power, density and subtle dark complexity that compliments the more austere, fragrant nature of Cabernet. The best NZ blends can be put up against the best Bordeaux or Super Tuscans and hold their own and will often age more gracefully.”
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