- Publish Date: Apr 20, 2010
Sauvignon Blanc is king in New Zealand's biggest wine region. Seventy-five percent of Marlborough's 16,000-plus hectares are planted with this grape, and with good reason: The unique, picturesque terrain produces a crisp, refreshing white that can be duplicated nowhere else.
Even if white wine isn't your thing, Marlborough is still a sight to behold. The lush, green vineyards hug a beautiful, curling river that stretches from deep inland out to sea. There are dark, imposing mountains to the north, and barren, dry foothills to the south. All this combines to create a sunny, temperate, free-draining landscape that's tailor-made for growing cool-climate grapes.
Marlborough's tasting rooms are refreshingly free of commercialism and rowdy bachelorette parties. Spend a few days here, and you might not see a single tour bus. (Sheep, on the other hand, can be seen in droves, sometimes even walking down the middle of the road--watch your speed.)
If you make the journey here, be sure to allow time for Seresin, owned by Hollywood cinematographer Michael Seresin (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). The biodynamic winery even makes its own olive oil, which you can taste along with the wines.
But you're best served starting the day across the street at Grove Mill. There you can kick things off with a sensory experience: Smell grass, passion fruit and a few other things that will reveal themselves in the Sauvignon Blancs you taste throughout the day.
Have a winery you'd recommend in Marlborough? Share it below.
as well on today's Sip!