Harvest Time in New Zealand – The Wairarapa Region
Johner Estate harvests it’s 2009 Pinot Noir vintage. Johner Estate is part of the wider Wairarapa Region, one of the best keep tourist secrets in New Zealand.
Johner Estate is outside of Masterton New Zealand in the northern Wairarapa Valley. Wairarapa is a young wine growing region north of Wellington over the Rimutaka Hills. Johner Estate has planted 8 ha of various Pinot Noir clones, originally selected in Burgundy, 3 ha of Sauvignon Blanc and a further hectare of 10 trial Varieties ranging from Pinot Gris to Syrah.
The better known wine town is Martinborough which is in the southern part of the valley. It is not unusual to see Martinborough wines on North American shelves crowded of course by the big daddy of New Zealand wine regions, Hawkes Bay and Marlborough. [Wairarapa PhotoStream]
Wairarapa was traditionally a farming and market growing community, but now boasts a strong wine growing heritage as well as one of the largest Wind Farms in New Zealand to the west of Masterton. Masterton also came to fame recently because Jemaine Clement of Flight of the Conchords fame was raised here and returned for a one off concert for the locals.
Because of time constraints, many tourists stop off or skip the Wellington region and head south to Queenstown and Christchurch, however Wellington, the Kapiti Coast and the Wairarapa also offer a spectacular experience.
Of particular note is the Toast Martinborough Wine and Food Festival held in November [Photostream]. There are however many activities that can occupy several days (or weeks). There are numerous Wine Cellars and museums you can visit as well as the cafe towns of Featherston, Greytown and Martinborough itself. If you are armed with plenty of SD cards (film) because the scenery from Cape Ferry in the south and Ekatahuna in the North. Wairarapa is not a Napa Valley experience it is more like a journey through Canada’s Niagara Wine Region or Hunter Valley in New South Wales.
One of our favorite destinations, if you are looking for a truly down home experience in New Zealand, it would be difficult to pass up spending time in Wairarapa, one of the fastest growing tourist areas in New Zealand.
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new Zealand is a beautiful country. The wine seems to be getting a lot better too.
Looks interesting.
Such a beautiful country..
Don’t forget that it’s essential to store wine properly, if it’s not going to be enjoyed soon after purchase, or you risk damaging this delicate, and fragile, creation. You can find a quick discussion of the important factors in storing wine and a guide to choosing a wine cooler at http://www.WineCoolerReviews.com
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I’m an American living in Martinborough and I love it here. We’ve got 20 acres and grow olives. It’s paradise. I blog about it at Moon Over Martinborough here: http://martinborough.wordpress.com/
I’m an American living in Martinborough and I love it here. It’s paradise. We’ve got 20 acres with an olive grove. I blog about it at ‘Moon Over Martinborough’.
I would love to take a trip to NZ during harvest time, looks like lovely weather.
Joseph´s last blog ..Farms Gallery – Noah’s Ark
I did not know that you would find wine in New Zealand. A very beautiful country and I hope that it does not have the drug problems we have. So please drink wine responsible because it can lead to addiction!