New Zealand winery Craggy Range announced this week that it has joined the historic French network, La Place de Bordeaux.
This is a first for the New Zealand wine industry and represents a high point for Craggy Range, whose wines will be included in this year's September release of the Bordeaux Negociant network La Place de Bordeaux. The historic network first opened its doors to the wines of non traditional winemaking countries with Almavaria in 1996 and Opus One in 2004; both in partnership with Chateau Mouton de Rothschild.
Since then, La Place has begun to offer the world's high ranking wines from Italy, the USA, South America, and other famed regions within France.
"La Place makes sense for Craggy as it expands our distribution reach within the world of fine wine. While this is great for Craggy, it will also reinforce the idea that New Zealand has a strong place in the world of fine wine, especially for Pinot Noir. Hopefully, this will encourage International negociants to look at New Zealand fine wine more seriously," says David Peabody, grandson of Terry Peabody, owner and marketing manager at Craggy Range.
"We believe our tGimblett Gravels vineyard in Hawke's Bay and our Te Muna Road vineyard in Martinborough both produce world class Syrah and Pinot Noir, respectively. The fact that the response from the negociant network within La Place has been so strong is a wonderful acknowledgement of that."
Tom Portet & Emma Thienpont of International First Growths said that they approached Craggy Range due to the quality of the wines and their international relevance.
"Very few brands from the new world have the presence in major markets that Craggy does. The growth in demand for international wines has been extraordinary, so the time is right to bring New Zealand into the mix."
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About Craggy Range
Craggy Range is focused on becoming one of New Zealand's great wine producers and a producer that can comfortably sit alongside the great wineries of the world.
Founded by the Peabody Family in 1998, the winery has focused on producing wines that are expressive of their place across it's two great estates in Hawke's Bay and Martinborough. The winery has a core focus on quality & sustainability.
About La Place de Bordeaux & International First Growth
While in the 17th century, La Place was the market where wine was traded, today, La Place de Bordeaux is a complex distribution network of negociants, courtiers & chateaux. Historically this was only elite Bordeaux Chateau but now increasingly also the top fine wines from around the world.
International First Growths is a courtier founded by Tom Portet and Emma Thienpont, both of whom have a strong historical connection to Bordeaux. Their purpose is to find and promote the world's finest wines in the highly specialised ultra-premium international marketplace of La Place de Bordeaux.
These highly reputable wines already have a track record of performance in primary and secondary wine markets – built on authenticity, heritage, qualitative character, regional identity and longevity.
