Vines first came to New Zealand in the 1850’s via the importation of Europeans to the far-flung island in the Pacific. However, it took a century for Kiwi’s to embrace their soils’ potential for fine wine production. Fortunately for all of us, New Zealand got on the wine train in the 1970’s and has been moving forward since then.

When speaking of wine in NZ it’s helpful to break the country into the North and South—which is basically to say the North Island and the South Island. Wine growing areas have been designated in both islands and experimentation has proven grapes that do well in each area.

The north is made up of six regions: Northland, Auckland, Waikato/Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay and Wellington. The Northland and Auckland are the northernmost (and therefore warmest, because NZ is south of the equator) regions of the north island. The regions produce wine but the climate doesn’t allow the regions to produce as much high quality wine as the more southern areas of the north island. Hawke’s Bay and Wellington are the major areas of fine wine production in the north island of New Zealand.

Wellington is the name of the region, but Wairapara and Martinborough are the names to remember from the south end of the North Island. Wairapara is the only district in the Wellington region that produces wine, and its focus is quality wine production. Within the Wairapara district is the small wine-centric town of Martinborough. The production from these areas in low in comparison the overall output New Zealand, but it accounts for a high percentage of the quality wine made in the country. The focus of the area is on Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc. Climatic studies in the early days of New Zealand wine highlighted the region as being prime for Pinot Noir cultivation. And they proved to be dead-on. Pinot Noir, from Martinborough in particular, are one of the most celebrated wines of New Zealand. The wines show intense aromas, bright fruit and excellent structure and acidity.

Hawke’s Bay is a region in the eastern side of the North Island and is one of the largest and most respected areas in New Zealand for fine wine. The regions latitude, farther north than Wellington, means the climate is warmer and the focus of wine making here is on Chardonnay and Bordeaux grapes. Chardonnay makes up half of the planted vines in the region and producers here create a variety of styles, from un-oaked and straightforward to heavily-oaked new world style wines. The quality is generally very good and is continually increasing as world demand for the grape grows. The Bordeaux grapes—particularly Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot—do very well in the Hawke’s Bay area. Some producers bottle straight varietal wines and some take the traditional Bordeaux approach and blend the grapes—with an increasingly heavier dose of Merlot. Waiheke Island in the region is especially well known for its Bordeaux blends, particularly Larose, one of the most expense NZ wines, which practically put the area on the map.

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In the north of Italy lies a region with a sixth of all Italy’s people and a healthy portion of its vines. The region is home to the best sparkling wine produced in Italy as well as some of the funkiest cheeses around—try Tellagio sometime, it’s actually very good. Here they call the Nebbiolo grape Chiavennasca and will sometimes dry them to raisins before making a strong, off-dry red. If you haven’t googled it already, the area in question is the Lombardy region, in north-central Italy, along the Swiss border.

The wine market of Lombardy in inextricably linked to its cultural center—Milan. The wines of the region have historically gone to quench the thirst of the cities citizenry. Over time, the region and the city seem to have worked out a deal were the vineyards grow what the city wants to drink—or perhaps the city just like to drink its local vino. In any case, there’s a lot of sparkling wine coming out of Lombardy as well as some excellent red wine called Valtellina.

Franciacorta is a DOCG wine zone (the highest quality level a region in Italy can receive), which grows grapes exclusively for use in sparkling wine. The region uses the Champagne process to make their wines and even uses the Champagne grapes Chardonnay and Pinot Noir—with a little Pinot Bianco thrown in for local flavor. The wines are aged for 18 months to 30 months for non-vintage and vintage wines, respectively. Franciacorta sparkling wines can be expected to have a little more sugar than Champagne, but they won’t be sweet. Any wine that is produced in the area that isn’t sparkling is called Terre di Franciacorta. Still wines from the region include blends of red Bordeaux grapes and aged Chardonnay in the style of Burgundy.

Outside of Piedmont—the ancestral home of Nebbiolo—the only area to grow the grape is Valtellina in Lombardy. Nebbiolo is famous for making Barolo and Barbaresco in neighboring Piedmont. In Lombardy the grape makes a more delicate wine, with less acid and tannin than the world famous Nebbiolos of Piedmont. Though lighter in style, Valtellina makes excellent red wines capable of aging for up to 10 years. A very unique wine is made here from the Nebbiolo grape, it’s called Sforzato and is made from grapes semi-dried grapes and results in a strong, rich wine, similar to Amarone.

Another region producing wine in Lombardy is the Oltrepò Pavese—literally “across the Po river.” Oltrepò Pavese is responsible for half the wine coming out of Lombardy, but most of it is simple wines that won’t get outside of Italy. The quality wines are made from Pinot Noir, both in sparkling white and still red wines.

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Carneros exists in its own little world. It’s the first American Viticultural Area (AVA) to be defined by climate—instead of political lines in the sand. It straddles the two most famous AVAs in the United States—Napa and Sonoma—with a portion of the appellation lying in each, and the ability to name it’s wines as Carneros or Napa/Sonoma, depending where the grapes are from. It’s the only area in the U.S. that is recognized internationally as a powerhouse of sparkling wine production. Carneros, or Los Carneros if you want, is a very special corner of the wine world, and it lies just across the bay from San Francisco.

The dominant climatic force in Carneros is the San Pablo Bay, an offshoot of the larger San Francisco Bay. This oceanic influence brings down temperatures and brings in strong winds, which consistently hit the vineyards of Carneros. The area was chosen by the great Louis M. Martini in the 1940’s because of the relative coolness of the climate—this is California after all, not Wisconsin, so the coolness is relative. Still the area showed promise for growing grapes that fare well in cool weather, namely Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

After some success in the 70’s with varietal, still versions of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the world began to form an idea. The idea went like this: cool climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay make some pretty good sparkling wine in Champagne…so, let’s make a sparkling wine in the style of Champagne in Carneros! And so began the veritable gold rush of the 80’s for good land in Carneros by the big Champagne (and Cava) producers.

The wines of Carneros are marked by a certain touch of old-world charm, mixed in with the fruit forward flavor profiles—they’re California wines after all. The Chardonnays tend to have significantly more acid and less of the creamy, roundness of most California Chardonnay. This style can be excellent on its own, but often finds its way into a blend of Chardonnays from either Napa or Sonoma. The clean acidity and brightness help to balance the fattier style of Chardonnay from warmer parts of the appellations. Carneros Pinot is noted for having a lighter body with more earthy aromas than most California examples of the grape.

The sparkling wine from Carneros is considered some of the best of the new world. The wines display excellent structure and acidity, with intense aroma and bright, clear flavors. Some of the best sparkling producers in the area are: Domaine Chandon, Domaine Carneros, Gloria Ferrer and Codorníu Napa. Sparkling wine from Carneros has the potential to age well, though most bottles follow the Champagne example and are blends of several years, so there won’t be a vintage year on the label.

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The South Island of New Zealand is an improbable place to find “the best in the world” of any type of wine. Consider that the area began producing quality wine with any seriousness in the 1970’s. Yet the Kiwis were able to successfully match a single grape to a geographic area—and get modern winemaking ideas in place. It’s quite remarkable. So is Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough. This gem of the New Zealand wine crown is not the only show in town though, there are excellent wines coming from all four wine regions of New Zealand’s South Island.

The smallest wine area on the South Island is also the farthest north (remember, we’re below the equator so north = warmer) The little area of Nelson doesn’t yet have the international recognition of its neighbor Marlborough, but its certainly on its way. The area lies in gentle rolling hills and enjoys the climatic regulation of the Tasman Bay. Wine production in the area is small, but focused on quality wine. Delicate, balanced Pinot Noir is the main red production and vibrant, flinty Chardonnay is the main white—along with some Riesling and Pinot Gris.

The world famous Marlborough lies on the northeast corner of the South Island, adjacent to the Pacific Ocean and rimmed by mountain ranges. The vineyards of Marlborough lie on broad alluvial plain that is home to some of the worlds best Sauvignon Blanc and quite respectable Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. More than 60% of the countries vineyards are in Marlborough. The regions climate is exceptional with very long sunny days and cool nights that help the grapes to retain the acid structure, which is such a hallmark of Marlborough Sav Blanc. The wines are generally very intense and pure with a balance of fruit and acid that is unparalleled.

Canterbury and Waipara two areas which are often grouped together as a single wine producing district. Both areas lie on the eastern coast of the island, south of the Marlborough region, near the city of Christchurch. Both areas produce predominately Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with Riesling the third most planted. The best area is in Waipara, in and around the Omihi Hills where quality Pinot Noir is the choice product.

Fun fact: Otaga is the southernmost wine region in the world. Otaga is unique on the South Island in that it is located in the interior, well away from any coast. Otaga is a geographically complex area with a true continental climate. This means there are significant temperature variations and well defined seasons with cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers. Today the area is producing some of the most exciting Pinot Noir in all of New Zealand. The land under production is rising quickly and the quality of the wine is surprisingly good. In good time this area will most likely be as synonymous with Pinot Noir in NZ as Marlborough is with Sauvignon Blanc.

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No other name evokes American wine in the way that Napa does. The consistently excellent quality of the wines coming out of the Napa Valley in California has earned the region an amazing brand. In most instances, a famous wine region is known for producing a single grape or style of wine; think Cabernet blends from Bordeaux or Pinot Noir from Willamette. While Napa certainly has cemented its reputation with Cabernet Sauvignon, the region is also known for excellent Merlot, Chardonnay and Zinfandel, amongst others. Basically anything that has Napa on the label will be able to sell for a higher price than if it was produced elsewhere. This is truly a triumph of wine making skill and excellent geographic site selection

Vineyards popped up in the Napa Valley almost as soon as settlers reached the area in the 1800’s with the first established in 1858. The wine industry in Napa moved along slowly from there, garnering a little attention here and there. Then came the double-whammy of Phylloxera and Prohibition. Phylloxera knocked out the vines and Prohibition denigrated wine production to sacramental purposes only. After Prohibition wine production picked up again and fine wine became the focus of some producers. The seminal moment came at the Judgment of Paris in 1976 when a Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa beat the best of Bordeaux. This led to renewed interest in Napa and California in general and began the landslide of activity that has culminated in the industry we know today.

Napa is further broken down into 15 sub AVAs, which are defined by unique microclimate and geographic differences. The geography of Napa leads to several climatic differences within the valley. The southern end of the valley abuts the San Pablo Bay, which brings cooler air in. The northern half of the valley is usually much warmer. Two of the best known are: Rutherford and St. Helena.

Rutherford lies just north of Oakville and is home to the famous Rutherford Bench a stretch of low-vigor soil composed of well-drained volcanic and maritime sediments. The star of the Rutherford Bench is Cabernet Sauvignon. This small appellation is home to some of the best producers in Napa, and some of the most famous wines in California, a sample list: Caymus, ZD, Livingston, Beaulieu, Quintessa, Frogs Leap and Cakebread.

St. Helena is home to some of the most sought after Cabernet produced in Napa. The AVA is the warmest in the entire valley and the vines are able to climb the steep valley walls and soak in the rays. The Grace Family and Colgin Herb Lamb wineries, based in St. Helena, have developed a near cult-like following for their mailing list only Cabernet Sauvignon. The bottles sell for hundreds, even thousands of dollars. Others in the AVA are Revana, Nickel and Nickel and Chase Family; and while Cabernet is big here, excellent Zinfandel is also produced.

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Perhaps no other wine in the world has been able to cultivate an image quite as well as Champagne. The houses of Champagne spent the 19^th and 20^th centuries making their wine as synonymous with upward mobility, the affordable luxury product. They affectively tied their sparkling wines with moments of celebration in the minds of the world’s consumers. In a stroke of genius, they specifically advertised to women. In an age when this was uncommon, it reaped rewards in brand loyalty that last to this day.

It should come then, as no surprise that the Champagne producers of France feel a great need to protect this valuable brand. There are literally international treaties that the French have negotiated to stop anyone, anywhere outside of the bounds of the Champagne AOC from calling their sparkling wine product “Champagne.”

True Champagne comes from the Champagne region, located in north-central France. The vineyards lie near to the city of Paris and are one of the most northerly outposts of grapes in the world. The grapes used to produce Champagne are actually quite familiar to most wine consumers: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with a little of the obscure Pinot Meunier thrown in.

Champagne is usually a white wine, but Pinot Noir is a red grape…no? Well, yes, it is, but in Champagne production the Pinot Noir grapes are crushed very lightly and removed from the skins quickly so that no color leaches into the juice. Most Champagne is a blend of the three grapes, however a bottle labeled Blanc de Noirs will be made exclusively from Pinot Noir and Meunier and a bottle labeled Blanc de Blancs is made from only Chardonnay.

Champagne today is always a sparkling wine, though it was a still red at one point in time. The geography and climate of the area sparkling wine production the best choice for growers in the area. The cooler climate gives the grapes a high dose of acid and lower sugar content. The high acid is beneficial to balance the texture of the bubbles in the wine. Champagne is made by the process invented in the Champagne area called méthode champenoise. While the process is repeated throughout the world to produce sparkling wines, the name is protected and cannot be used on labels of wines that are not Champagne.

Champagne is produced in several levels of sweetness, from driest to sweetest: Brut zero, Extra Brut, Brut, Extra Sec, Sec, Demi-Sec and Doux. Most Champagne is a non-vintage wine. This is different than most still wines, and is why there is generally not a vintage on the label of Champagne. The Champagne houses blend their wines, using wines from several years to arrive at a “house style.” This process is designed to ensure that you’re favorite bottle of Champagne will taste the same, year-to-year.

Imagine if Coca-Cola or Budweiser tasted different every year…that consistency is what the Champagne houses are aiming for. Every few years though, there is an excellent vintage and the Champagne will be made from only that year’s wine. These special wines are called vintage Champagne and are aged for longer, then released with a vintage date on the label.

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The Willamette Valley of Oregon was a very popular destination for the wagon trains that travelled west on the Oregon Trail in the 1840’s. These days, it’s a popular destination for wine connoisseurs seeking some of the best Pinot Noir in the country.

The Valley (pronounced will-ham-it) lies on the western side of Oregon, between the Cascade Range and the Oregon Coastal Range. The valley follows the meanderings of the Willamette River from its sources in the mountains to its confluence with the Columbia River.

The climate—created by the valleys proximity to the sea, the large river and the protection of the mountains on both sides—is consistently gentle, cool and moist, with little high or low temperatures. Pinot Noir is a very temperamental grape and the climate in the Willamette Valley is just right for this grape to ripen and thrive. The temperature range, latitude and rainfall patterns found in the Willamette Valley is very close to those in the Burgundy region of France—the ancestral homeland of Pinot Noir.

The potential of the Willamette for Pinot Noir was evident from early experiments with the grape beginning in the last half of the 20^th century. The competition in Paris known as the Wine Olympics gave Willamette Pinots 2^nd and 3^rd place finishes in 1980 and 1979, respectfully. These competitions placed the start-up wines of Oregon ahead of the top Pinots in the world from Burgundy. Some critics point out that the new world Pinots are made to age faster, and thus will show better in a Wine Olympics style competition, than a Burgundy Pinot Noir. Even given this consideration, the high placement in these competitions was a revolution in wine and established Oregon as a new power in Pinot.

These days there are many producers in the Willamette making amazing Pinot. Producers like Domaine Drouhin, Domiane Serene and dozens of small wineries are making Pinot in a style that is close to the old world Burgundy—but with a distinct new world twist of fresh fruit. These wines are consistently great and some are excellent. They aren’t inexpensive, but they are some of the best Pinot Noir bottles you can find.

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The case could easily be made that the Côte de Nuits is the most complex piece of land growing vines in the entire world. This little strip of land, perhaps two miles wide, along a single ride of limestone in hills of central France produce wines from a quilt of appellations and communes. And these aren’t any ordinary wines; the grape juice from these hills can command the highest prices in the world in any given year—how about $9,000 for that bottle of ’88 Richebourg at a fancy restaurant. That’s not a joke.

The wines of the Côte de Nuits are almost exclusively red, from only Pinot Noir. This special little segment of the Earth is blessed with the ability to grow the most graceful Pinot Noir around. The Côte de Nuits is one of the most northern wine-growing regions in the world; it lies along the 47^th parallel (which is about the same latitude as northern Minnesota!) That far north, the weather is inconsistent, it can go from very hot to very cold with hail an issue every summer. The climatic variation means that vintages are quite variable in quality levels.

As with most of the great wine regions of France, the Romans were the first to introduce vines to Burgundy, and the Côte de Nuits. The vines remained after the Romans left and continued to make wines, with a good amount of monastic supervision. The reputation of Nuits wines traveled far; the wines from the area were the favorite among the Popes when they briefly moved the church to Southern France. King Louis XIV drank only Nuits wines—his personal physician recommended them for supposed restorative properties.

Grand Cru vineyards in the Côte de Nuits have been proven over time to produce the best wines in the area, and there are many in the Côte. The village Givery-Chambertain has nine Grand Cru that share the last name –Chambertain, all are excellent. Clos de Vouget is a single vineyard inside of ancient monastic walls. Morey-St-Denis has the Grand Cru vineyards of Clos de la Roche, Clos St. Denis, Clos des Lambrays, Clos de Tart and Bonnes Mares. Though all the Grand Cru are famous, none is more so than those in the village of Vosne-Romanee, home to Romanée-Conti, La Tâche, Richebourg, La Romanée, Romanée-St. Vivant and La Grand Rue. These are the bank-busters, the archetype of red Burgundy and are sought after the world over.

The power and grace of wines produced in Nuits is legendary. Here, Pinot Noir reaches its highest potential, producing wines that have earthy aromas, elegant tannic structure, seamless integration of oak and acid and the ability to age with poise. These are expensive wines, but they are truly one of a kind, not found anywhere else, and the rarity along with the quality makes them worth every penny.

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Perhaps no other wine region in the world is as obsessed with terrior as Burgundy is. And just what is terrior you ask? Terrior is and idea the French came up with to describe a piece of land given the variables of: microclimate, soil composition and local geography. The differences in those variables and the way that they come together can have a profound impact on the resulting wine. Burgundy has been classifying tiny parcels of land according to soil, climate and geography for centuries. Most believe they were the first to start this practice.

Burgundy is located in the east of France, just north of the Rhone district. The area has been under cultivation for thousands of years and today remains one of the premier wine regions in the world. Climatically, the Burgundy region is described as continental, which means it has distinct seasons, cold winters, hot summers and potentially severe weather.

The Burgundy district contains several regions: in the north there is Chablis, in the south there is Beaujolais, and in the center is the Chalonnaise, Maconnais and Côte d’Or. All the regions produce quality wine, but only the Côte d’Or is home to the astronomically priced wines that are often associated with Burgundy. The Côte d’Or itself is split roughly into two areas, north and south. The North is the the Côte de Nuits and the south is the the Côte de Beaune.

The region of Burgundy covers a significant geographic area and contains more separate AOC areas than any other in France, but it uses only a small number of grapes. The dominant white grape in Burgundy is Chardonnay. Grown from the north to the south, Chardonnay makes most of the white wines in Burgundy, though some is made from Aligote as well. There are only two significant red grapes in Burgundy: Pinot Noir and Gamay. Gamay is only grown in significant amounts in Beaujolais, other than that, Pinot Noir is the dominant grape, especially in the Côte d’Or.

The Catholic Church has played a significant role in the history of Burgundy. Historically the Church has owned many vineyards and monks were vintners of Burgundy. The Cistercians were the first to really put together the idea that different vineyards made different quality levels of wines. This was the beginning of the concept of terrior that is so crucial today in Burgundy. The other key player in Burgundy is the negociant, a person or company that buys grapes or grape juice from many vineyard owners and then makes and bottles wine from this collection of sources. The negociant plays a critical role in Burgundy because so many of the important vineyards have had their ownership split into tiny parcels as they have been passed down generationally. In some vineyards an owner may only own one or two rows of vines. It’s not feasible for this owner to make wine commercially, so they sell their grapes to the negociant.

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Oregon Pinot Noirs have been hailed as some of the best.  What got them this distinguished status among the world’s best Pinot Noirs?

The grape growing conditions of the Willamette Valley are ideal for this varietal.  Iron-rich red soil, combined with warm sunshine and nourishingly damp climate make for the perfect growing conditions.  There was something magical about the 45th parallel, that imaginary line around the Earth that brought us fantastic Cotes du Rhones from France and Piedmonts from Italy.  Tapping into this little-known fact, Dick Erath experimented and planted over 23 varieties in the hills of Dundee over 40 years ago.   Through some trial and error, the Pinot Noir grape flourished in Oregon’s warm Summers and cool wet Autumns.  The marine climate allowed bright fruitiness to come forward through a well-developed grape.

Erath Winery put Oregon Pinot Noirs on the map in 1972.  Today, the Willamette Valley is home to hundreds of wineries, making it the Sonoma Valley of Oregon.  If you are visting Portland, Oregon, don’t miss Erath Winery located in nearby Dundee.  The tasting room is open 11am-5pm everyday.  You can also arrange a tour of the cellars by calling ahead.

The legendary Erath Winery has a wine club that is free to join.  You enjoy 20% off regular pricing on any of your orders.  The catch is that they only ship 4 times a year, but each shipment comes with a selection of 3 wines costing less than $85.  These wines are fantastic and well worth the anticipation!

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