WAIPARA UNCORKED

Waipara Valley was once known for its family-based hobby vineyards, but not anymore. As five local winemakers tell us, the valley is ripe for the picking

WORDS ADRIENNE REWI

The rolling vineyards
of Pegasus BayNew Zealand’s South Island is home to some of the world’s southernmost vineyards. Among them, the Waipara Valley region is an unsung hero.

Located 45 minutes north of Christchurch, this picturesque 15km-long valley has undergone a total transformation over the last 20 years. Once dry farmland, it now boasts 80 vineyards and an estimated 1,200ha of grapes, making it New Zealand’s fourth largest wine region.

With a global reputation for excellence, investment by some of the country’s biggest wine producers and a planned NZ$60-million development comprising a wine centre and a hotel and day spa to be managed by Accor Hotels, it’s easy to see why Waipara is seen as one of the most exciting and fastest growing wine regions in New Zealand. It’s also becoming a hub for dynamic young winemakers keen to make their mark in the production of the region’s key wines: pinot noir, riesling, pinot gris and chardonnay.

“What’s wonderful about Waipara is that it has evolved from small, family-based hobby vineyards into a serious winemaking region with huge diversity and potential – especially for pinot noir and riesling,” says Pegasus Bay winemaker, Lynnette Hudson.

Treat yourself to a
meal at Pegasus Bay
restaurant, the best
in the valleyHudson, 41, and her winemaker-husband, Matthew Donaldson, 37, have worked in vineyards around the world and are happy to settle into Donaldson’s family business – one of the earliest Waipara vineyards, planted in 1986.

“Pegasus Bay produces a broad range of varieties but in line with an international awareness of the potential for dry wines, we’ve been working on a dry riesling. We’ve just released our 2007 vintage.

It’s hard to make a very good dry riesling; it’s a challenge for any winemaker but as a developing region, Waipara is without stigmas and restrictions and we can be experimental and adventurous.”

Oher adventures for Hudson and Donaldson mean a trip to Amberley’s Brew Moon Garden Café & Brewery, where they enjoy Kieran McCauley’s freshly brewed beers or a trip to the dramatic limestone cliffs and warm, sheltered waters of Mackintosh’s Beach.

Matthew Donaldson and
Lynette Hudson“You have to ask the farmer for access across his land and you have to walk for 10 minutes to get there but it’s worth it,” says Hudson.

Scott Berry, 26, is winemaker for Waipara Downs Wines, established by his mother, Ruth, in 1986. They had their first commercial harvest in 1991 and as someone brought up in the valley, Berry is passionate about the place.

“I love the valley – playing rugby for the Glenmark Rugby Club; watching the fabulous sunsets over Mt Grey and Mt Cass; visiting other winemakers and tasting their wines fresh out of the barrels. There’s a group of us up here all trying to make a dry riesling and, while we’re competitive, we also get on well and enjoy a drink together,” he says.

“From a winemaking point of view, Waipara’s hot dry weather and limestone soils put it right on the money for making intensely-flavoured pinot noir – that’s our focus, along with quality pinot gris, riesling and chardonnay.”

Photo: Adrienne RewiAt Greystone Wines, 31-year-old winemaker, Dom Maxwell admits to being a perfectionist and the winery’s early string of gold medal awards for its riesling and pinot gris belie the fact that its first commercial harvest only took place in 2006.

“We’re trying to differentiate ourselves by making a serious pinot gris – one that’s fruity, texturally thick and has good palate weight and rich aromas. We’ve planted 50% of our vineyard with pinot noir – we want to be known for making a serious pinot noir with concentrated fruit flavours and an ability to age well.”

Like most other young winemakers in the area, Maxwell is enthusiastic about Waipara’s potential.

“Waipara is a quiet place and there are still a lot of farms here. That gives the area a lovely laidback feeling. We have quite a young community of winemakers and while we’re using traditional techniques, we’re all forward-thinking, energetic and open to new technology. We often get together for an informal chat over drinks. And when we want good coffee we head for the Nor’ Wester café in Amberley, or Pukeko Junction at Leithfield. They’re both great spots for time out.”

Duncan McTavish’s
European experience
appears in his winesDuncan McTavish, 33, is winemaker at Waipara Springs Wines. McTavish has applied his European winemaking experience to starting the winery’s new brand, Premo, first released in 2005.

“Our standard Waipara Springs range offers typical fresh, fruit-driven New Zealand wines. Premo has an old-world inspiration from the classic wine regions of Europe. It’s a more structured, more food-driven wine,” he explains.

“Waipara may be a small region but we have a global mentality when it comes to producing wine. There’s a tremendous amount of planting and that sort of big investment indicates the faith people have in the region.

“It’s a buoyant place to be working and any afternoon you’ll find a group of us hanging loose at one another’s vineyards, tasting and talking wine for hours on end. We all want to be the best but it’s also a very sharing winemaking community.”

Dom Maxwell has a
nose for perfectionNicholas Brown, 33, winemaker at Daniel Schuster Wines, agrees. “There’s a new wave of enthusiasm among the young winemakers up here, and everyone is pumped about the fact that Waipara is finally starting to get the attention it deserves. There’s huge potential here to create expressive wines and that’s our aim.”

For Brown, the valley’s extreme seasonal changes are part of the pleasure of the place. “There are a lot of beautiful wine regions in the world and Waipara is certainly one of them. It’s a gentle, rolling rural landscape with very intense summers but in the evenings, everything cools down and comes back to life. It’s softer then and very beautiful. Then in the autumn, everything changes to gold and yellow. I really enjoy the way those seasonal changes are expressed in the wines too.”

Photo: Adrienne RewiThe Crater Rim winemaker, Theo Coles, 32, has a passion for pinot noir. He’s also “nodding more towards European models” in his goal of a more intense site-specific wine with concentrated flavours.

“Up here in Omihi, which is a sub-region of Waipara, we have a slightly different terroir, which produces more ethereal aromas. Waipara pinots are richer, more masculine with spicy, gamey aromas; ours have the classic feminine aromas – violets and roses – with power underneath.”

Like his neighbours, Coles likes nothing better than throwing the winery doors open at the end of a busy day and unwinding with a glass of wine.

“It’s a very chilled out area up here – beautiful landscapes, big skies, amazing sunsets, an active exchange of ideas. Everyone is producing great wines and I think the whole place is about to explode. Having a wine region of this calibre one hour from Christchurch is very exciting.”

FIND IT:

Pegasus Bay Winery & Restaurant, 263 Stockgrove Rd, RD 2, Amberley, Waipara Valley, tel: +64 (3) 314 6869. Cellar door daily 10.30am–5pm; restaurant noon–4pm daily.

Waipara Downs Wines, Bains Rd, RD 3, Amberley, tel: +64 (3) 314 6956. Tastings by appointment.

Greystone Wines, 376 Omihi Rd, Waipara, tel: +64 (3) 314 6101. Tours and tastings by appointment; cellar door due to open spring 2008.

Waipara Springs Winery & Restaurant, 409 Omihi Rd, Waipara, tel: +64 (3) 314 6777. Cellar door daily 10am–5pm; winebar and café daily 11am–5pm.

Daniel Schuster Wines, 192 Reeces Rd, Omihi, Waipara Valley, tel: +64 (3) 314 5901. Cellar door daily 10am–5pm.

The Crater Rim, 1226 Omihi Rd, 3 RD, Amberley, tel: +64 (3) 314 5990. Tastings and tours by appointment.