Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/5037
T his year marks the 30th anniversary of Brancott's first vintage of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, a landmark celebration for the New Zealand wine industry. THE TASTING PANEL celebrated this milestone with winemaker Patrick Materman and tasted the newest releases of Brancott's 2009 Sauvignon Blancs, as well as Pinot Grigio and Pinot Noir. "Our first commercial release of Sauvignon Blanc in 1979 re- ally caught everyone's attention," says Materman, who explained that Brancott (known as Montana in New Zealand) was the first winery to plant Sauvignon Blanc in New Zealand. The lanky Kiwi has been making wine at Brancott for the past 20 years. "I've been around to see enormous changes in the New Zealand wine business. The country ex- ports ten times as much wine as it did 20 years ago," he relays, adding, "We just cracked the one billion mark this year, and we can't expect a population of four million to consume all that wine. Exports com- prise 70% of wines produced here, and Sauvignon Blanc is Marlborough's claim to fame." But Pinot Noir has also experienced giant leaps in New Zealand. Materman pointed out that in 1996, Brancott produced 600 cases of Pinot Noir. "We're up to 200,000 cases now. I suppose that makes us the world's biggest Pinot Noir producer." "And now, we bring our 2009 Sauvignon Blancs to the table; it's been a fabulous year." While 2008 was a big-cropping year, according to the winemaker, 2009 saw a major push to reduce crop levels. "Between the recession and the rate at which the industry was planting beforehand, we made a conscious decision not to flood the market." Consequently, the '09 Sauv Blancs show more con- centration, aromatics and palate weight. Confidence in Marlborough A celebration of 30 years of winemaking for New Zealand's Brancott The Marlborough Man. Brancott winemaker Patrick Materman. photos by Cathy Twigg-Blumel 70 / the tasting panel / december 2009 Milestone