North Winds Wine Travel, Hilarie Larson

"New Zealand wine shines in the shade of Mount Beautiful"

​New Zealand is the epitome of ‘New World’ wine; innovative, eager, fresh and adventurous. Blazing new trails is nothing new in the world’s most southerly wine region.

The famous Southern Alps provide a much needed rain shadow for the vineyards of Mount Beautiful Winery in North Canterbury, New Zealand. photo courtesy of New Zealand Winegrowers www.nzwine.com

​‘Noble grapes’ (vitis vinefera) made their first appearance almost 100 years ago, in 1819, thanks to Church of England missionary Rev. Samuel Marsden, who planted vines on the North Island. The first wines, however, were created by James Busby, known as the ‘Father of Australian Wines’, thanks to his importation of vine cuttings from France and Spain. When he was posted to New Zealand in 1833, he brought a selection of the vines and produced his first vintage in 1836.

For decades, New Zealand’s most prevalent variety was an American grape, Isabella, that produced mostly sweet and fortified wines for local consumption. By the 1960’s and 70’s, vineyards began to expand to cooler regions and these obscure varieties were replaced with higher quality vinifera. One of the biggest influences occurred in the 1980’s, thanks to a young, government viticulturist by the name of Dr. Richard Smart. His bold, new ideas centered around ‘canopy management’ (the canopy being the leaves of the vine) and how it could be utilized to balance the growth of the plant and control yields. These ‘modern’ techniques are now commonly implemented around the wine-world.

Vineyard site selection became more important and many growers were drawn to the Southern Island with its cooler climate. New Zealand wines began to rise in quality and quantity, making export, especially of their trademark Sauvignon Blanc, a reality.

New Zealand, the world's most southerly wine grown region, hosts award winning vineyards on both the north and south islands. 

​Today, vines are planted in 9 growing regions on both the North and South Islands. While officially in a temperate climate zone, the entire region is subject to huge maritime influences. The oceans moderate the temperatures, but also bring moisture, humidity and winds like the strong, westerly ‘Roaring 40’s’.

For this reason, the majority of the vineyards on the South Islands are planted on the gentle, undulating, western slopes of the Southern Alps, a chain of 18 high mountain peaks that form the ‘spine’ of the island. The mountains shield the vines from extreme winds, giving the area a long, dry growing season with plentiful sun.

The region of Canterbury/North Canterbury has been acclaimed by Decanter Magazine, as‘ the center of the finest Pinot Noir in the Southern hemisphere.’ yet it is still unknown by many wine lovers. Thanks to Mt. Beautiful Winery, that is all about to change.

David Teece, owner and founder of Mount Beautiful Winery, spent years searching for the perfect expression of New Zealand's many unique terroirs. photo courtesy of

​In the early 2000s, New Zealand native and renowned economic scholar David Teece, went in search of an ‘off the radar’, unique spot where he could start a vineyard and return to his family farming roots. In true, pioneering spirit, he finally located four farms in North Canterbury. The land was a mix of soft slopes and steep hills, with gullies and flats and a myriad of soil types. The farms lay in the shadow of Mount Beautiful.

Vines, an array of 30 different clones matched to the individual terroir, were planted in 2003 through 2005. Sauvignon Blanc is the most prolific and planted in the cooler, northern blocks, while Pinot Gris enjoys the warmer, north facing hills of silt and clay. The first variety to be bottled was Riesling, also planted in the higher elevations and sheltered by neighboring pine forests. Chardonnay joined the portfolio in 2013, but it’s the Pinot Noir, nestled in the warmer, southern sections, that really embody what Mt Beautiful is all about..

At a recent event, I had a chance to sample some of the latest vintages and enjoy a few perfect food pairings.

2016 Mt Beautiful Sauvignon Blanc
Not your typical ‘grassy, kiwi’ New Zealand take, but a more sophisticated and elegant, Bordeaux style. A small portion was barrel fermented, lending a nice balance between soft mango and ripe, tropical nuances and the slightly zesty kumquat notes on the finish. The pairing was a blueberry, nectarine and cream cheese galette, which accentuated the fruit character of the wine.

2015 Mt Beautiful Pinot Gris
Classic stone fruit aromas of peach and pear met with fresh cut hay and white florals that lingered through to the surprisingly full finish. Seeded whole-wheat crackers topped with chèvre and apricot preserves were a pitch perfect pairing.

2015 Mt Beautiful Pinot Noir
More Old World than New, with raspberry and dark strawberry notes, tinged with fresh thyme, fresh forest floor and light toast notes. Very easy to drink as an ‘apéro’ wine but food friendly, too. Paired nicely with Sweet Peppers stuffed with a herbed cream cheese.

The Times-Tribune, Dave Falcheck

Even as the weather cools and the air gets a bite to it, we don’t need to abandon white wines just yet.

Now is the time to reach for heavier, richer and spicier white wines as the leaves start to drop.

White grapes that originate in Rhône — such as the trinity of marsanne, roussanne and viognier — tend to make richer wines whose texture comes from the grape rather than oak aging.

Blindfold 2015 California White Wine offers a kitchen-sink blend of fall-ready grapes — chardonnay, roussanne, viognier, grenache blanc, marsanne and chenin blanc — and offers a viscous mouthful of baked apple and spice with a round texture and ripe finish. The wine shows a bit of creaminess and sweet oak from aging. $32.

A perennial favorite of mine is Priest Ranch Grenache Blanc. Made from a grape that is a mutation of the red grenache, Priest Ranch Napa Valley 2016 Grenache Blanc is a complete package with smells of starfruit, a rich texture and tropical notes. Yet, it manages to pull off a clean finish that crackles like dried leaves. Sadly, there are only a few of these left in the Pennsylvania system in an older vintage. $12. 1/2

I tried going back to Rhône for a deal but came up empty-handed. Cave de Tain Première Note Marsanne is dry and unfocused, with elementary tree fruit character and acidic finish for an anonymous, dry white wine. $12.

You would do better with another selection, such as a blend or Côte du Rhône Villages Blanc to try these grapes at the source.

Fall is the best time to enjoy a style of wine I usually avoid: oaky chardonnay. Substitute your pumpkin spice with oak spice in a wine such as Mt. Beautiful North Canterbury 2015 Chardonnay, which is fermented and aged in oak but in way that doesn’t result in a woody wine. The fruit in this New Zealand wine is so loaded with apple and nectarine character that it stands up to the buttery notes and oak spice. It almost tastes like a mulled wine. Even when it is cold, it tastes warm. $15.

Other suggestions for fall favorites include the off-dry Vouvray, made with fall-friendly grape chenin blanc. German wines that lean sweeter, such as riesling or sylvaner, are great this time of year by themselves.

DAVID FALCHEK, executive director of the American Wine Society, reviews wines each week. Link to article here. 

Capital Gazette, Wine, Etc ... Patrick Darr and Tom Marquardt 

October 18, 2017 

Please to be featured in this article! 

"There was a time when Halloween was for kids. Now it's also for adults who want to be kids. With many kids thankfully long gone from the nest and thus unable to witness the debauchery, adults don absurd costumes and party. When else can fear and death be so celebrated?

We've been to our share of Halloween parties and frankly they scare us. All these otherwise normal people dressed in expensive goblin garb or outfitted with bed sheets and face paint is enough to make us duck under the covers. But, after a few drinks, even the guy with the bloody axe seems to be hilarious.

If you are attending one of these feral soirees, why not complete the package with a scary wine? ... 

We recently tasted two current wines from Mt. Beautiful Winery from the North Canterbury region on the South Island of New Zealand. The Mt. Beautiful Rose 2016 ($15) is made from 100 percent pinot noir grapes and exhibits a luscious mouth filling cherry, strawberry, and watermelon nose and flavors.

We also enjoyed the Mt. Beautiful Pinot Noir 2015 ($26) that displayed bright cherry and cranberry elements with just a hint of elegant oak. A great package! Both of these wines are worthy of consideration."

Wine & Wonder, Robin Shreeves - October 22, 2017 

I spent last weekend laughing my ass off with three wonderful friends - Cheri, Lisa and Dina. I met them at summer camp when I was in high school, more than just a couple of years ago at this point. Now, we get together at least once a year to eat good food, drink good wine, enjoy the outdoors, and play card games that leave us in tears of laughter till late at night.

My friends all grew up in the Poconos where a large Polish population lives. Dishes like homemade pierogies and haluski were common in their homes (but definitely in mine). They decided to put these foods on the menu for one of our weekend meals. And I decided to do what I do best in these situations. I brought the wine.

Research led me to choosing Sauvignon Blanc, based on a recommendation from DeliPair. Put a link to a recipe in the website's search bar, and it suggests a wine based on the ingredients. The website suggested a Sauv Blanc from either Chile or New Zealand to complement the cabbage, butter, and spices in the food.

I had a bottle of Mt. Beautiful 2016 Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand sitting on my wine rack so I added that to the other wines I chose to take for the weekend, and off I went. 

Lisa was mid-dumpling making when I arrived, and the kitchen smelled like a delicious time was about to be had. The dumplings were added to butter-sauteed cabbage for the haluski. She also made panache - potatoes and cheese spread between two thin layers of dough, baked in the oven and then spread with butter while still hot. Cheri brought homemade pierogies - more cheese, potatoes, and butter. Jalapeno cheddar kielbasa rounded out the dinner.

So what we had - besides a whole lot of yum - was something very rich, very buttery, and very fatty. Enter a crisp, lemony, acidic Sauvignon Blanc to cut through the heaviness and balance it all out. The pairing worked.

The Mt. Beautiful 2016 Sauvignon Blanc is bright with the aroma of grass, flowers and stone, with minerality, lemon, and some melon on the palate and a mouth-watering acidity. Depending on where you purchase it, this bottle falls into the $15-$18 range.

The winery, which is located in the Canterbury region on the South Island - where a lot of wonderful Sauvignon Blanc comes from - has a commitment to sustainability that I really appreciate.

Sustainable farming methods are a core value behind Mt. Beautiful's success; the vineyards and winery are certified-sustainable. In the vineyard, the team uses minimal input—they tread very carefully, using things like motorbikes to pull the mowers and harvesting by hand. Lush ground cover acts as host plants for parasitic wasps that naturally keep pests under control. Flowers and other plants attract beneficial insects in and around the grapevine rows. Additionally, after these helpful plants have flowered and served their purpose, their organic matter adds nutrients to the soil.