YOU may not recognise his name, but Gary Duke is behind some of New Zealand's finest, most exciting wines.
IF you are looking for one easily digestible, memorable tip to improve your appreciation of wine, remember these three words: follow the winemaker. Ever wondered why your favourite wine brand has gone slightly off colour? More than likely it is not b
ecause the vineyard had an appalling vintage or the grapes were subject to rot or the bottles not clean. In all probability it is because the winemaker has changed – in most cases, lured to a greater producer with more infinite resources.
It's an old tip we were taught in the wine trade that, rather like a tipster who always bets on the jockey, invariably rings true. One winemaker I have been religiously following for about a decade is Gary Duke, from Hunter's, the winery of Jane Hunter – in some circles regarded as New Zealand's finest.
Down in Marlborough, at the north-eastern tip of South Island, Duke has been quietly turning out some of New Zealand's greatest wines for about a decade and a half. What is really exciting about Hunter's wines is their compatibility with various types of food. Marlborough is known for its cool sea breezes and a climate that enables grapes to ripen to near-perfect levels. This has helped to establish its reputation for fresh, lively wines with super-ripe gooseberry fruit and mouth-watering, tingling acidity. But Hunter's tames the opulent character of the region and produces stylish, clean wines with perhaps a little more complexity and finesse. They are not over the top, and the sauvignons marry superbly well with dishes such as oaked smoked salmon and grilled fish, while the pinot noir, with its perfumed cherry and raspberry aromas, fits in with duck or roast pork.
Hunter set up the winery with her husband Ernie in 1983. As a young couple with little money, they produced the first vintages with an old cider-making kit from a nearby factory. The quality of the early vintages soon began to filter through to a wider audience, but then, after producing six award-winning wines, Ernie was killed in a road accident outside Christchurch. He was 37.
The following years saw Hunter pour her energy into the business. A fully qualified viticulturalist, she began a journey to maximise the potential of the vineyards based on the philosophy of quality not quantity. Yet to think of Hunter's wines only in terms of sauvignon is wrong. Her chardonnay, riesling, gewürztraminer and pinot noir are all worth stocking up on. I confess to being a particular fan of Marlborough chardonnay, which tends to be less oaked than those found in Australia and generally has a crisp, flinty style more akin to chablis. Yet unlike its French counterpart, it also possesses tropical flavours of nectarine, ripe melon and restrained, buttery oak. The pinot noir doesn't have the same breadth of flavour or magical quality as Burgundy, but its style is no less attractive. Rich, ripe, red-berry fruit flavours dominate, with much less of the vegetal fruit flavours that can be found in France.
I recently tasted a range of Hunter's wines with the firm's general manager, Peter Macdonald. They were every bit as individual as I had expected and well worth tracking down.
Miru Miru sparkling wine, Hunter's Wairau Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand, £11.99A tight, lean nose with a subtle, light, yeasty character and peach and citrus aromas. The palate is strong and long, with a similar bite to European sparkling wines that makes it ideal as an aperitif.
2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Hunter's Wairau Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand, £13.99This has pin-pointed purity with an idiosyncratic herbaceous nose. Of course, there are all the hallmarks of Marlborough – gooseberry, lemon and some tropical fruits on the nose – but there is also a balance and subtlety about this wine.
2006 Pinot Noir, Hunter's Wairau Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand, £14.99Although undoubtedly possessing a New World forward style, this has enticing notes of the forest floor, with black cherry and plum fruit aromas. Excellent with picnics and fatty meats such as duck.
STOCKISTS Edinburgh Wine Importers (01506 468900); Henderson Wines (0131 447 8580); Peter Green & Co (0131 229 5925); Luvians Bottle Shop (01334 477752); Abbey Wines (01896 823224)
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Bonterra Chardonnay 2007, California, USA
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Perez Cruz Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, Chile
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The full article contains 786 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
