Who was the first pioneer of Pinot Noir in the North Island of New Zealand?
The most likely candidate is a relatively unknown woman called Marie Zelie Hermance Frere, a French settler who planted vines near to Masterton in the late 1800s.
This year, the sixth vintage of a wine made in homage to her insightful early pioneering was made and it was released late last month in Martinborough. The wine is the 2019 Martinborough Vineyards Marie Zelie Pinot Noir, which was formally launched at a tasting and dinner at Runholder winery in late July.
The evening was hosted by winemaker Paul Mason, the outgoing winemaker who has been at the helm of Martinborough Vineyards for the past two decades. He also made the 2019 Marie Zelie Reserve Pinot Noir and was pleased to release this wine on the eve of his departure (later this month - August) because he has been waiting since 2013 for an outstanding vintage to make another edition of Marie Zelie Pinot Noir. This wine is produced only in outstanding years and is made in the vineyard as well as the winery, said Mason at the launch, giving gratitude to viticulturist Dave Shepherd who tends the vines that Marie Zelie comes from, which are among New Zealand’s oldest Pinot Noir vines.
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Try this 2019 Martinborough Vineyards Marie Zelie Pinot Noir RRP $230
High in price, low in volume and impressive in taste, the sixth vintage of Marie Zelie Pinot Noir to be made at Martinborough Vineyards was made from entirely hand picked grapes which were given a small portion of whole bunch fermentations which accentuates the structure and delicacy of this wine. It's a full bodied, mouthfilling Pinot Noir with dark cherry, Omega plum and spicy layers of aroma in a silky textured wine with time on its side. It was aged for 13 months in French oak and bottled in July 2020, spending the time ever since quietly ageing.
A lovely collector's piece or buy and keep it for a special occasion in another decade. This wine is a keeper and you can age it with confidence.
In an ironic twist, a century after Marie Zelie Hermance Frere first planted her vines, her great-great-niece married the co-founder of Martinborough Vineyard, Derek Milne, who planted some of the first vines in Martinborough in modern wine times.
