NZ Flashcards
What was NZ’s most planted variety in the 1960’s?
Albany’s surprise
What is NZ’s largest winemaking company?
Montana
What winery put NZ vineyards on the map?
Cloudy Bay 1985
Where are the majority of vineyards planted in NZ?
Marlborough
What is the most planted varietal in NZ?
Sauvignon Blanc
What geographical feature provides a rain shadow on the South Island?
The southern alps.
The NZ winegrowers organization is a joint initiative between:
The grape growers counsel and the New Zealand wine institute
What percentage of NZ wines are finished with a screw cap closure
85%
Auckland wine region is known for what kind of wine varieties?
merlot bordeaux based blends
Kumeu, Waiheke Island and Matakana are notable sub regions of…?
Auckland
Where is the bulk of the north islands production?
Gisborne, Hawkes Bay, Wairarapa
What is the north islands driest climate?
Hawke’s bay
What are the predominant gravel types in Hawkes bay?
Gimblett gravel, sandy loam, greywacke gravel to heavy silt
What’s a synonym for Gisborne?
Poverty Bay
What is micro-oxidation?
Infusing minimal levels of oxygen so they don’t oxidize later
What are esters?
The compounds responsible for the fruity characteristics in wine
What is flying winemaker?
Australians known as flying winemakers - teaching other regions about vineyard practices
What is a hallmark component of Australian wine making?
Blending
Hunter Valley Semillon characteristics?
Chartreuse-like in color, ages well
Gimblett Gravels in Hawkes bay is known to produce which varieties very well?
Bordeaux blends, Syrah
What are the most planted varietals in Hawkes Bay?
Chardonnay and Merlot
Bridge Pa, Esk Valley and Dartmoor Valley are notable sub-regions of?
Hawke’s bay
Gisborne is also known as?
Poverty bay
Is Gisborne primarily planted with white or red grapes?
White
What is the official name of the Wairarapa region?
Wellington
What is the most planted grape in Gisborne (Poverty Bay)
Chardonnay has replace Muller-Thrugau
Martinborugh, a sub-region or Wairarapa is particularly successful with which varietals?
Pinot Noir and Sauv Blanc
What’s the northern most region in NZ’s South Island?
Nelson
What percentage of NZ’s wine does Marlborough produce?
67%
What is the most planted grape of Marlborough?
Sauv blanc
What producer controls the majority of Marborough vineyards?
Montana
Montana’s Lindauer brands produce which type of wine?
Sparkling
What is the majority of soil composed of in Marlborough’s three major sub-regions?
sandy, alluvial loam topsoil over gravel. (good drainage!)
What are the three major sub regions of Marlborough
Wairau Valley, Southern Valleys (central), Awatere Valley (southernmost)
Waipara valley is in which region?
Canterbury
What is the world’s southern most wine region?
Central Otago
What varietal is Central Otago known for?
Pinot Noir
Wanaka, Alexandra and Cromwell basin are subregions of?
Central Otago
Felton Road, Mt. Difficulty and Rippon are producers in what region and of what grape?
Central Otago, Pinot Noir
What is the most planted red grape in NZ?
Pinot Noir
Is mechanical harvesting the most common harvesting method in NZ?
Yes
How does the climate vary from the North Island to the South Island?
North is warmer and rainier
Where is Dartmoor, Esk River and Ngauroro Valleys located?
Hawke’s bay
What region has a dry climate in NZ?
Hawke’s bay
Where is Bannockburn located?
Central Otago (small, historic mining town)
Where is Trinity Hill located?
Hawke’s Bay
Stonyreidge vineyards in Waiheke island is known for what varietal?
Bordeaux blends
Kumeu River is the name of both a producer and a subregion in what major New Zealand region
Auckland
The Wairau Valley is located within which New Zealand regions
Marlborough
What region is NZ’s smallest by production volume?
Northland
What is the second most planted red grape in Australia?
Cab Sauv
Chambers, Campbell’s, and Buller are top producers in which region
Rutherglen
What famous Northern Rhône producer established a winery in Mount Benson
Michel Chapoutier
Who began wine production in New Zealand (planted the grapes and harvested)?
James Busby who is actually regarded as the “father” of Australian wine. He left Australia and headed to NZ with French and Spanish cuttings.
When did a form of temperance, “Six o’clock swill” that began during WWI end in New Zealand?
Not until 1967
As of 2019, what percentage of New Zealand’s vineyards were located in Marlborough?
70%
And 60% of the country’s total acreage was planted with Sauvignon Blanc
The North Island of New Zealand Lise’s on the the same latitude as which Australian wine making region?
Tasmania
…but over 1200 miles of ocean separate the two
Is mechanical harvesting common in New Zealand?
Yes
What is the job of the New Zealand Winegrowers?
To promote and present a unified face for New Zealand wine. It was formed in 2002
It’s a joint initiative of the Grape Growers Council and the New Zealand Wine Institute.
When a grape or region is on a New Zealand wine label, what percentage of grapes must be included from stated varietal/region?
85%
Which is New Zealand’s northern most GI?
Northland.
It is NZ’s smallest area of production, accounting for less than 1% of the country’s production.
The region of Auckland (named after New Zealand’s largest city) produces how much of the country’s wine?
1%
What is the capital of New Zealand?
Wellington
What soil is Hawke’s bay known for?
It’s Gimblett gravels.
Which varietal’s are planted in Hawke’s Bay?
Chardonnay and Merlot are the regions most planted varietials.
Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon are all widely cultivated and Hawke’s Bay is considered and important red wine region - it is establishing itself as a route of good Syrah and Bordeaux-style blends
What is another name for Poverty bay?
Gisborne.
Is Gisborne planted with more white or red grapes?
Overwhelmingly, Gisborn is planted with white grapes - Chardonnay being the most planted.
Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer and Viognier also perform well.
Red grapes struggle to ripen in Gisborne.
What is the southern most region on the north island?
Wairarapa (the region is official named Wellington as it include New Zealand’s capital city)
What sub-region of Wairarapa does Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc stand out in?
Martinborough
What is the northernmost region on the South Island?
Nelson
Nelson produces Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay
What percentage of New Zealand’s total wine production takes place in Marlborough?
70%
With 26,000 ha of Sauvignon Blanc alone planted there.
Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, and Riesling are the next most-planted grapes (although even the combined acreage trails that of Sauvignon Blanc)
What produce controls nearly 2/3rds of Marlborough’s vineyards?
Montana (through subsidiary wineries such as Brancott and Fairhall)
Besides still white wines, what other style of wine is gaining a reputation in Marlborough?
Traditional Method Sparkling Wines
What are the three sub-regions of Marlborough?
Wariau Valley
Southern Valleys
A water Valley
The soils here are generally composed of sandy, alluvial loam topsoil over gravel, providing excellent drainage and limiting vine vigor.
What subregion of Canterbury contains the majority of the regions vineyards?
Waipara
Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Pinot Gris are successful here.
Which grape is most highlighted in Central Otago?
Pinot Noir.
What is Central Otago’s climate like?
Central Otago is the only region in the country to experience a truly continental climate, with greater seasonal temperature extremes than any of the country’s maritime regions.
Diurnal temperature swings are also quite significant and winemakers take advantage of this by planting on northern hillside exposures.
What are some of Central Otago’s subregions?
Wanaka Gibbston Alexandra Cromwell Basin Bannockburn
Felton Road, Mt. Difficulty, and Rippon are noteworthy producers of which grape in which region?
Pinot Noir in Central Otago
Is dry farming or irrigation more common in Marlborough?
Irrigating
Which is the youngest New Zealand wine region?
Canterbury
