Literally translated Sauvignon is from the French word Sauvage meaning wild and blanc meaning white, probably due to its early days in the wilds of South West France! In the late 1700’s, the vine was crossed with the Cabernet Franc to produce the Cabernet Sauvignon vine in Bordeaux.

Depending on the country of origin and climate, the flavour of the wine can range from very grassy (France) to sweetly tropical (New Zealand). Wine enthusiasts have used the phrase "crisp, elegant, and fresh" and other  descriptions include Gooseberry, cut grass, cat pee on nettles (not the nicest of descriptions, but so true!) mango and other tropical fruit notes and also citrusy.

It is so versatile that it can range from the crisp, dry, and refreshing white varietal wines from the Loire (Sancerre) to the sweet famous dessert wines from Sauternes and Barsac and the dry, yet sweet flavours of Marlborough in New Zealand (Goldwater Estate, Cloudy Bay) to the dry, strong herbaceous flavours of the wines from Molina in Chile (Echeverria) pairing well with dishes ranging from oily fish, cheese, artichoke dip, veggie dishes or dips, garlic or Italian seasonings in creamy sauces, fragrant salads - like Greek, Caesar or Garden, Thai food and Sushi.

Although the Loire and Bordeaux regions still produce fantastic wines from this grape, it is becoming more and more popular in the New World regions of New Zealand, South Africa, Chile and Argentina where the wine drinkers of Europe are after more than the usual Chardonnay from the New World.

The Sauvignon Blanc vines in Chile were first planted using cuttings from France before the attack of phylloxera, the insect plague which devastated French vineyards in 1863, fueling the debate as to whether the Chilean Sauvignon Blanc is the real thing, as the French overcome Phylloxera by grafting American root stock (somehow unaffected by the insect) thus producing a cross breed and not pure, but this is an ongoing debate!.

New Zealand Sauvignon’s have taken on a notable fan base in recent years with such bold leaders as Cloudy Bay and Goldwater Estate.

The first cuttings of Sauvignon blanc were brought to California in the 1880s and are now found widespread, notably in the Monterey County and Santa Rosa regions.

As a rule, Sauvignon Blanc wines are drunk young to enjoy the zesty, fresh fruitiness of the wine but as in the case of Bordeaux, they can be enjoyed for up to fifteen years old and especially in the case of Sauternes, many years older.

The next region to excel with Pinot Noir was Martinborough on the southern end of the North Island. Several vineyards including Palliser Estate, Martinborough Vineyards, Murdoch James Estate and Ata Rangi consistently produced interesting and increasingly complex wine from Pinot Noir at the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s.

At around this time the first plantings of Pinot Noir in Central Otago occurred in the Kawarau Gorge. Central Otago had a long (for New Zealand) history as a producer of quality stone fruit and particularly cherries. Significantly further south than all other wine regions in New Zealand, it had been overlooked despite a long history of grape growing. However, it benefited from being surrounded by mountain ranges which increased its temperature variations both between seasons and between night and day making the climate unusual in the typically maritime conditions in New Zealand. In recent years Pinot Noir from Central Otago has won numerous international awards and accolations making it one of New Zealand's most sought-after varieties.

The first vines were planted using holes blasted out of the north facing schist slopes of the region, creating difficult, highly marginal conditions. The first results coming in the mid to late 1990s excited the interest of British wine commentators, including Jancis Robinson and Oz Clarke. Not only did the wines have the distinctive acidity and abundant fruit of New Zealand wines, but they demonstrated a great deal of complexity, with aromas and flavours not common in New Zealand wine and normally associated with burgundian wine. Producers include Felton Rd, Chard Farm and Mt Difficulty.

The latest sub-region appears to be Waitaki, on the border between Otago and Canterbury.

In a recent blind tasting of New Zealand Pinot Noir featured in Cuisine magazine (issue 119), Michael Cooper reported that of the top ten wines, five came from Central Otago, four from Marlborough and one from Waipara. This compares with all top ten wines coming from Marlborough in an equivalent blind tasting from last year. Cooper suggests that this has to do with more Central Otago production becoming available in commercial quantities, than the relative qualities of the regions' Pinot Noir.

As is the case for other New Zealand wine, New Zealand Pinot Noir is fruit-driven, forward and early maturing in the bottle. It tends to be quite full bodied (for the variety), very approachable and oak maturation tends to be restrained. High quality examples of New Zealand Pinot Noir are distinguished by savoury, earthy flavours with a greater complexity.

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