Bordeaux Gimblett Gravels blind tasting: who’s the winner?

At a recent judgement tasting organised by New Zealand's Gimblett Gravels Winegrowers Association in Hong Kong, Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW and Rod Easthope of Craggy Range led a blind tasting of Gimblett Gravels 2009 vintage against Bordeaux classed growths (including all five first growth) 2008 vintage. Some 30 experienced tasters including media from Asia (Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Singapore), sommeliers, F&B directors and serious wine lovers were asked to rank their top eight wines out of the sixteen tasted. They were told in advance that the sixteen comprised eight Gimblett Gravels Bordeaux style wines and eight Bordeaux, and the labels were listed; so this was a blind tasting but not double-blind.

Martinborough Pinot Noir: Hidden treasure

Martinborough is the smallest wine region in New Zealand. The area under vine is about 3% of New Zealand’s total but wine production is only 1%. Although the journey is only a one hour drive from Wellington, it is a winding road up the mountain and down into the valley, with numerous twists and turns. No wonder Martinborough is easily overlooked by wine lovers.


If you think New Zealand Pinot Noir is Central Otago, think again. Most vines in Martinborough are Pinot Noir, although the quantity is nowhere near Central Otago’s. It all started in the late 1970s when a few brave souls followed the advice of a soil scientist, converted farmland into vineyards, and proved that Martinborough is indeed ideal for viticulture. Today there are some 58 growers in Martinborough. Sizes range from the smallest with less than 2 ha under vines, to the biggest (still fairly small compared to Marlborough) with 85ha.

The Martinborough Terrace, where most vineyards are.