To most of the world’s wine drinkers, if New Zealand means anything at all it is pungent, crystal-cut Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc but Kiwis themselves are more likely to see Pinot Noir as their really important calling card. Although growers of Cabernet and Merlot in Hawkes Bay try their best to capitalise on the dramatic increase in grape quality there, the world is not – let’s face it – short of respectable Bordeaux blends. It is, on the other hand, very short of New World answers to red burgundy, and New Zealand, having the world’s southernmost vineyards is ideally placed to grow the relatively early-ripening Pinot Noir. In...