Martinborough – Pinot Noir for ageing?

This is a prelude to Julia's and Richard's notes on an array of new releases of NZ wines recently shown in London.

An octet of Martinborough Pinot Noir producers strode confidently into London in September to draw attention to Pinot Noir from their region, east of the capital Wellington, in the south of the North Island, and especially to its ability to improve with age.

Just as Marlborough and Sauvignon Blanc have become inseparably hyphenated, so have Pinot Noir and Central Otago, particularly on export markets. Martinborough, on the other hand, seems to receive a good deal less attention.  Not...