Pinot Noir Researcher Heads to Marlborough

14 February, 2007

California’s Top Pinot Noir Researcher Heads to Marlborough and Central Otago

The potential for New Zealand to build a reputation for world class Pinot Noir will be given a boost by the visit this month of a Californian expert in Pinot Noir and grape phenolics, Dr Doug Adams.

The Marlborough Wine Research Centre is keen to establish a research relationship with Dr Adams, whose wine research programme at the University of California, at Davis, is highly respected within the international wine industry.

Dr Adams is renowned for his research into grape ripening; the biochemical changes during ripening, the development of tannins and phenolics in the skins and seeds of red wine varieties, and the consequent level of tannins in wines.

His visit to New Zealand is funded by one of Liquorland Limited’s two grants to viticulture research, awarded last year to the Marlborough Wine Research Centre and the University of Auckland Wine Science Programme.

Liquorland’s “Minister of Wine”, Belinda Jackson, says the $80,000 grant is an opportunity to help support research which has an ultimate benefit to everyone within the wine industry.

“It’s a logical step for us to support research which will raise the quality, and thus the profile, of our leading grape varieties.”

Marlborough Wine Research Centre research leader Dr Mike Trought says the substantial grant is going to ensure support for the continuing research into whether New Zealand will be able to produce Pinot Noir of a consistent standard to match the international reputation of its Sauvignon Blanc.

Dr Trought says Dr Adams is widely known and deeply respected for his research within the industry and it will be invaluable for the Marlborough research team to be able to build up a relationship with him and his department at the University of California.

“We’re fortunate to be able to bring him here at a time when this notoriously difficult grape is becoming so widely planted in New Zealand and our Pinot Noir production is at a pivotal point in its development,” said Dr Trought.

“We’ve demonstrated the potential here for Pinot Noir but we have not yet achieved the reliability and consistency that is needed to confirm a national or regional claim to making excellent Pinot. Some winemakers are producing very, very good wine but it’s vital that we lift the overall standard to ensure consistency if we want to establish the international reputation of New Zealand Pinot Noir.

“We have the climate and soil to achieve this but it’s really important that we get the various components of the fruit right; if any aspect is out of balance then it is detrimental to the final product and that is where we can draw on Dr Adam’s expertise,” he said.

“When I met him in July, he expressed particular interest in our research programme investigating the variability in fruit composition within the vineyard which, I hope, will provide a good foundation for ongoing collaboration.”

Marlborough Wine Research Institute executive officer Gerald Hope says Pinot Noir is a very important grape for the wine industry, with export volumes increasing by 55 percent in the year to June 2006, putting it second, behind Sauvignon Blanc, in terms of volume sent to overseas markets.

The level of interest in, and commitment to, the grape was evident at the recent Pinot Noir 2007 event in Wellington, he said.

“It’s the leading red grape planted in this country and considered to have enormous potential. But we have some way to go to develop a sufficiently high standard in this variety and this visit, we hope, will open the door to an immense pool of analysis and expertise to help us take that next step,” he said.

Dr Adam will visit Central Otago vineyards from February 19 and will arrive in Marlborough on February 26.

ENDS

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