New Zealand Flashcards
James Busby
Planted the first vines in the late 1830s
“Six o’clock swill”
A move by anti-alcohol forces in the country to return men to their wives at a respectable hour, and those of the business of alcohol surrendered. This lasted until 1967.
Issues maintaining viticulture:
Poor wine, aggressive prohibition, low quality hybrids
Montana
New Zealand’s largest producer
Gisborne Chardonnay
The country’s first varietal wine released in 1973
Cloudy Bay
Founded in 1985 by David Hoen
Sauvignon Blanc
As of 2017 over 70% of New Zealand’s vineyards were located in Marlborough, and over half of the country’s total acreage was planted with Sauvignon Blanc.
Central Otago
The southernmost wine region in the world lies on the 45th parallel
New Zealand’s vineyards
Mechanical harvesting is common. Highest average price per bottle due to high amount of manual labor
All Zealand producers and growers belong to New Zealand Winegrowers
An organization formed in 2002 as a joint initiative of the Grape Growers Council and the New Zealand Wine Institute
The Screwcap Initiative in 2001
Today over 85% of the country’s wines are finished with the closure.
The screwcap has become synonymous with Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. Kim Crawford was the first to commercially release a New Zealand wine under screwcap.
The major wine regions on the North Island:
Northland
Auckland
Waikato/Bay of Plenty
Gisborne
Hawkes Bay
Wairarapa
The major regions of the South Island:
Nelson
Marlborough
Canterbury
Central Otago
As of February 2019,New Zealand has 20 official GI’s including:
New Zealand GI
North Island GI
South Island GI
85% Rule:
New Zealand wines must contain a minimum 85% of a stated grape or vintage.
When labeled with a GI, 85% of grapes must come from the stated GI.
(Spirits is 100% labeled with a GI)
