New Zealand’s next step: Saddled with the popularity of Sauvignon Blanc, winemakers yearn for a challenge

October 4, 2010

New Zealand’s next step: Saddled with the popularity of Sauvignon Blanc, winemakers yearn for a challenge
Blenheim, New Zealand — Anyone can identify the vines near the small town of Blenheim, New Zealand: This is Marlborough, famous among wine lovers for its zingy Sauvignon Blanc, and that grape hangs from nearly every vine. Fly into the area on the hopper flight from Wellington, and you see the tall Sauvignon Blanc vines shooting to the sky like whisk brooms pushed into the ground handle-first. Drive along the quiet country roads that ring most of the area’s wineries, and you’ll see vines closing in all sides. You can’t escape the grape; neither can the local wineries.
American wine drinkers fell hard for Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc in 1985, when Cloudy Bay first began exporting its wine. The lively, grassy, minerally wine, a perfect pairing for raw oysters and Pacific Rim cuisine, sprinted to cult status. The intense aromas and crisp acidity provided a predictable, easy-to-like flavor profile, and the production methods made it easy for industrial wineries to cash in. Suddenly, Marlborough was wine country. The few patches of grapevines, first brought to the area in 1973 by Montana Wines, exploded into a shag carpet of vineyards, pushing out the garlic that had been the region’s hallmark crop. And the world wanted more.
“We see demand constantly increase; it hasn’t slowed down,” says Chuck Hayward, wine buyer at San Francisco’s the Jug Shop, one of the country’s best sources for New Zealand wine. Growers know it, too.
“There’s a lot of laziness there; if growers plant Sauvignon Blanc, they know it will sell,” Hayward says. Though wine enthusiasts may have moved on to newer darlings such as Austrian Gruner Veltliner and Basque Txakoli, demand for Marlborough’s primary export remains strong among average drinkers.
Though New Zealand only accounts for 15 percent of U.S. sales of Sauvignon Blanc by volume, according to Nielsen Company data, its sales continue to expand, growing nearly 29 percent in the past year.
“Not a day goes by that someone doesn’t order Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, and interest and demand has remained consistent,” says Ken Wagstaff, wine buyer and sommelier at San Francisco’s Aqua restaurant.
This despite the fact that he doesn’t push it as a food wine: Its intense flavor overwhelms subtle dishes. And the style’s popularity has inspired competition from other New World wine regions ready to snatch Marlborough’s crown the moment that drinkers turn away.
Clive Dougall, the winemaker for Seresin Estate in Marlborough, sums up the dilemma: “It seems to me that the insatiable demand for Sauvignon Blanc has discouraged winemakers from trying to make a better Sauvignon with more complexity.” Marlborough is, perhaps, a victim of its own success.
Wine without complexity
Marlborough’s winemakers will often tell you off the record that they find “Sauvy” boring. Some are more direct about the industrial version: “I don’t personally care for it,” says Mike Weersing, owner of Pyramid Valley Vineyards, which makes Marlborough Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Semillon, and Pinot Noir, but no Sauvignon Blanc. He says the emphasis on intense aromatics, from variety to winemaking, creates a wine that gives plenty of aroma but no complexity. “It’s a parody of a real wine,” he notes via e-mail.
That’s why “boring” is a common descriptor for industrial Sauvignon Blanc: Growers push yields high, machines harvest the grapes efficiently and hydraulics tilt the grapes into the controlled guts of a stainless steel tank. Ferment the juice, check it occasionally, and you end up with the wine that everyone wants to buy. Winemakers don’t need to check clusters, manage barrels or handle the grapes delicately.
“In order to make a very aromatic, intense, commercial-style Sauvignon Blanc, machine harvesting is advantageous,” says Dougall via e-mail, whose Seresin Estate winery practices biodynamic farming and handpicks its grapes. Machine harvesting works “because some of those aromatics are released by an enzymatic reaction between the crushed berries and juice.” The grapes get squished, sloshing the skins and juice together.
And it costs less. Clive Jones, the winemaker for Nautilus Estate, says, “Handpicking is at least four times the cost of machine picking.” Barrels, he argues, double the cost of tank-based winemaking.
Jones sees the bright side of this simple winemaking. “I think Marlborough Sauvignon is exciting, seeing those vibrant flavors quickly transformed from grape to glass,” he says.
“Yes, it is relatively simple to make in the winery but the key is the picking decision … Winemakers spend more time walking up and down rows tasting grapes than hovering over pumps in the winery. Machine harvesting … allows us to react quickly and harvest larger quantities of grapes at the optimum time.” Besides, he says, “A focus on single or limited varieties works very well for Champagne and Burgundy so why not Marlborough?”
Source: http://articles.sfgate.com/2008-04-11/wine/17143467_1_cloudy-bay-sauvignon-blanc-new-zealand-s-next-step-wine-enthusiasts

The wine shop in Angeles Philippines Clark Freeport Zone Pampanga as well as other wine shops, wine bars and wine outlets in Subic and Manila are wells stocked with interesting selections of SAUVIGNON BLANC wine from many vintages spanning over 90 years from various producers covering a wide range of prices.

As a wine collector, hobbyist or someone in the wine trade, are you concerned or interested about this also? If so, please stay tuned in to Yats Wine Cellars’ web site to stay abreast of things to do with wine in the world.

News and pertinent information about wine trade, wine appreciation, wine shops and outlets, wine and food pairing, wine making, viticulture, vintages, climate conditions affecting wine, new and revived wine regions etc can be found here in this section. Yats wine Cellars is much more than a Philippines wine supplier with a few wine shops, wine bars and wine outlets in Philippines where clients can buy good wines in Manila, Angeles City, Subic and Clark Philippines. Yats Wine Cellars is also a rich source of information for the convenience of the growing community of wine lovers, wine connoisseurs and hobbyists. Wine lovers in Manila, Subic, Angeles City, Clark Philippines can enjoy fine vintage wines in any of Yats Wine Cellars wine shopping outlets, wine bars, wine shops and wine restaurants.

You are welcome to post your comments and questions about any topic related to wine on www.YatsWineCellars.com or email Wine@Yats-International.com with your comments, suggestions, questions, purchases or inquiries on wine and wine-related topics.

This wine shop in Manila Philippines makes wine shopping a really rewarding and exciting exercise. Wine shops in Pampanga should always have an element of surprise so that customers and wine lovers can enjoy a little bit of thrill when they go to a wine shop in Manila to look for a good bottle of wine in Clark Pampanga.

Chateau Lafite-Rothschild is the most revered wine in China and many other parts of Asia. The best wine shop in Asia to buy older vintages of Chateau Lafite is Yats Wine Cellars located in Clark Philippines. Aside from Lafite, visitors can buy other fine wines at this wine shop in Clark Pampanga such as Latour, Mouton-Rothschild, Haut-Brion and Margaux. Excellent Burgundy wines like Chambertin, Vougeot, Musigny, Bonnes Mares, Pommard, Meursault, Chambertin, Vosne Romanee, Romanee Conti, La Tache and Romanee St. Vivant can be found here.

Family outings, picnics, company outings and other events for up to 300 can be held in the picnic grounds of this wine shop. Events that have been successfully organized here include family fun days and BBQ picnics. These are some of the things that visitors to Clark Philippines particular look forward. Residents and tourists in Angeles City and Subic also come to Clark Freeport to partake in the fun at this Clark wine shop.

This wine shop’s vast selection of vintage wines makes it possible for Yats Wine Cellars to offer a unique line-up of wines for every private wine party, wine tasting or wine dinners. Guests of these private wine parties are treated to a rare experience of vintage wine not seen in wine shops in major cities in Philippines or even in Asia.

http://www.ClarkWineCenter.com

Getting to this wine shop in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Philippines from Manila
Getting to the Clark Wine Center wine shop from Manila is quite simple: after entering Clark Freeport from Dau and Angeles City, proceed straight along the main highway M A Roxas. Clark Wine Center is the stand-along white building on the right, at the corner A Bonifacio Ave. From the Clark International Airport DMIA, ask the taxi to drive towards the entrance of Clark going to Angeles City. From Mimosa, just proceed towards the exit of Clark and this wine shop is on the opposite side of the main road M A Roxas.

Best place to buy wine in Clark Pampanga outside Manila near Subic and Angeles City Philippines is Clark Wine Center.

Clark Wine Center
Bldg 6460 Clark Observatory Building
Manuel A. Roxas Highway corner A Bonifacio Ave,
Angeles Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga 2023
0922-870-5173 0917-826-8790 (ask for Ana Fe)

Wine@Yats-International.com

YATS Wine Cellars
Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 ask for Rea or Chay

Best place to buy wine in Clark Pampanga outside Manila near Subic and Angeles City Philippines is Clark Wine Center.

Wedding couples looking for wedding reception venues and beach wedding venues can log on to this Philippines Wedding Venue web site for free information and assistance:

http://www.PhilippinesWeddingVenue.com

While in Clark, it might be a good idea to enjoy an evening of wine-and-dine in the fine dining Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar that features an award winning 2700-line wine list. It is located in Mimosa Leisure Estate of Clark Freeport Zone. For more information, visit http://www.YatsRestaurant.com

YATS Leisure Philippines is a developer and operator of clubs, resorts and high-class restaurants and wine shops in Clark Angeles Philippines http://www.yatsleisure.com

Looking for famous tourists spots, places to visit and see, relax and unwind in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines? You may want to check out these sites also:

http://www.LondonPubClark.com

http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com

http://www.YatsWineCellars.com