St Helena wines are becoming sought after

Press, 19 November 1982, Page 16

St Helena wines are becoming sought after

Maurice Hunter’s

GRAPEVINE

Those enthusiasts who were disappointed last year at being unable to sample St Helena wines, by virtue of the fact that the entire production was sold out within hours, will have better luck this year. In spite of considerably greater production, there is 'Still not enough to supply all retailers. So 50 per cent of the available wines will be released to selected retail outlets, and the remainder will be held for sale direct from the winery. Additional plantings last year of chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and merlot will be producing by 1985/6, and extended plantings of rhine riesling and pinot noir will provide for progressively wider releases.

In the early stages the winemaker, Danny Schuster, expressed the opinion that, barring an exceptional season, 100 per cent varietal wines could not be expected from a new vineyard during the first six years. This year was such an exceptional season with near perfect distribution of rain and sunshine, resulting in three exceptional wines, two years ahead of schedule. Two of these, rhine riesling and pinot noir, will not be released until November, 1983. Although I normally avoid mentioning wines which are not available, I feel that they deserve mention as an example of what is being done in Canterbury. It is a wise decision not to release the rhine riesling at present. Although the potential of this wine is easily discernible, it needs the time. In keeping with European rhine rieslings, bottle ageing will allow the complexity and flavour to come together to result in one of the best to

be produced in New Zealand. We tested the pinot noir straight from the wood. Considering that only five months had elapsed since the grapes were on the vine, it is incredibly good. No other pinot noir I have tasted has had the same intensity of colour, full rich flavour and velvety feel as this one. It is not, in fact, a pinot noir — it is a burgundy. It will be truly exciting to await its development until its release date.

The St Helena gewurztraminer, which will be on sale, is a dry, Alsatian style made from late picked grapes. It has the big aromatic bouquet typical of the variety and is remarkably complex and well balanced for one so young. It will continue to develop for another two or three years — actually, it should not be drunk for at least 12 months.

Although the distinctive fruit flavour lingers, it has a refreshing acidity in the finish, a fact which may not be appreciated by those who have developed a palate for the existing New Zealand styles with their touch of residual sweetness.

But those with the patience to cellar this wine will be rewarded. The two wines made available last year have been repeated, muller thurgau/ gewurztraminer and Estate White.

The former, a blend of 60 per cent muller thurgau and the balance traminer, is made from the free run juice and was cold fermented into a soft; aromatic wine with a fruity, almost dry character. . The blend is exactly right, with the traminer asserting itself in the fragrant bouquet and the muller thurgau mak-

ing its contribution in fullness of fruit with a clean finish.

Comparison of the ’B2 with the ’Bl accentuated the benefit of cellaring with a deepening of colour and smoothing out of the acid into a full, well rounded wine. The Estate White ’Bl was predominantly rhine riesling and pinot blanc with a small quantity of traminer and muller thurgau, producing a soft, easy to drink wine which was well accepted. The ’B2 version, while retaining the early drinking character, is principally muller thurgau and pinot blanc with a little rhine riesling and pinot gris, the blend being full and complex and with slightly higher acidity than the ’Bl. It will soften even further with a little time in the bottle.

A new style introduced this year is the pinot blanc/ muller thurgau in the proportion of 65 per cent and 35 per cent respectively. It has been ' produced specifically as a food wine, full in body and of refreshing finish, which will make it an

ideal accompaniment for sea foods.

The bouquet is unusual but not unpleasant. It is an intriguing blend which will continue to improve over the next two years. All in' all, it may be regarded as a successful year for St Helena. Danny Schuster is to be commended for his innovation in developing new styles instead of trying to compete with those already on the market. All too often wine producers leap on to the band waggon to cash in on a style which has been proved to be popular, such as muller thurgau, for instance. Although he uses muller thurgau in his blends, there are so many on the market that he sees little point in producing yet another. He is proving that ’ there is tremendous scope for new development and we may look forward to future productions from St Helena with interest.

This year’s wines will be released from the winery tomorrow, and from some retail outlets during the following week.