The Original Queenstown Wine Trail offered a relaxed tour of four wineries, with the centre of gravity in Gibbston Valley. The four were:

  • Gibbston Valley Winery
  • Waitiri Creek
  • Peregrine
  • Chard Farm

I’ll not go into details of each of them, but rather give a short summary of Central Otago.

The main variety is the Pinot Noir grape. Typically each vineyard makes a first and a second label, the second to be drunk within the year or so, and the other possible to store for some few years. Top labels get to rest on new french oak barrels, whereas the cheaper (not exactly plonk or quaff wines, but not as complex, and in a moderate price range) are left on steel tanks with oak chips added.

The other wines are mainly white, but also rosé and sometimes méthode traditionelle bubbles (a.k.a. Champagne in everything but the name). The rosé ones are Pinot Noir where the wine has fermented with the grape skins for say 15 hours only.

As for white wines the main varieties are Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Gris, and the occasional Gewürztraminer. There is also Chardonnay, but lately there has been a downturn for Chard in favour of Sauv B.

The Chardonnay ones are quite different from what I am used to. They are usually stored on old oak barrels, so the oak flavour does not come as marked. They are quite light and elegant, with the typical buttery smell to it.

Pinot Gris is my favourite though. Very little residual sugar, fruity, and fresh, soft acid.

As we were only three on this tour, the tastings were more personal and generous. Everybody knows everybody else in the business in the region. The wineries are quite small by most standards, particularly in relation to the ones in Marlborough on the north island.

Every other vineyard makes a point of the international awards and appraisals bestowed on some of their wines. Can there be so many gold medals and top reviews?

They do get problems with the frost, so propellers or smoke pots are visible in many vineyards. Even helicopters are used to keep the frost from settling on the grapes. There is no doubt though that they get a lot of sun. Altitude is at around 450 m.

Enjoyable wines from a spectacularly situated region!