Wine Expert Enjoy Central's Pinot
Published by the Southland Times , 6 Feb 2010
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The boisterous, exuberant qualities of Central Otago pinot noirs will be blogged and written about by influential wine writer Neal Martin when he returns to the United Kingdom.
Mr Martin is responsible for reviewing New Zealand wine for Wine Advocate, a widely read wine publication based in the United States.
After attending New Zealand's Pinot Noir 2010 celebrations in Wellington this week, he flew to Queenstown as the guest of Central Otago Pinot Noir Ltd.
He was at Gibbston Valley Wines yesterday to undertake a blind tasting of 76 Central Otago wines.
"Central Otago pinot noir has a very distinctive style," he said.
Regionalism within New Zealand pinot noir-producing regions was covered in a symposium at the celebrations.
Mr Martin said Central Otago pinot noirs came out favourably.
"The two dominant pinot producing regions of New Zealand – Central Otago and Martinborough – have distinctive differences," Mr Martin said.
"Central Otago has more forward fruit flavours. It's more fun and like a party guest who's having a really good time.
"Martinborough pinot is more like someone who stands in a corner, but is worth making the effort to get to know."
Mr Martin said the comparison came down to personal taste, but that pinot noir from both regions were very strong.
Mr Martin said Central Otago pinot noir was exceptional, considering the young age of the vines in the region.
"Your vines are so young. That means there is a lot of room to develop and mature as the vines get older it will give a lot of potential to the aging process."
Mr Martin said returning to New Zealand for Pinot Noir 2010 was a pleasure, and the chance to come to Queenstown was a bonus.
"Coming as a guest of Central Otago Pinot Noir to taste wines specifically from the Central Otago region is great.
"New Zealand is such a dynamic country that things happen really quickly, so you really have to keep up with what's going on," he said.