As predicted in Marlborough 2009 – another glut, official figures suggest that the 2009 vintage will be about as big as last year’s enormous harvest in New Zealand, swollen by huge crop levels in Marlborough and new plantings virtually all over the country. The signs are that it is only by dint of heavy crop thinning that the total will not be more than 2008’s 285,000 tonnes of grapes.
Certainly when I was in both Marlborough and Central Otago earlier this year, growers were fearful about finding a market for their grapes, and wine producers were keenly aware of the glut and its likely effect on prices.
The UK is New Zealand’s most important market for wine by far and we have seen a very distinct softening of prices of NZ wine over the last few months.
A major factor has been the extensive new plantings of vines, some of which are yet to come on stream. These have dramatically reduced average vine age. Total plantings of Sauvignon Blanc in New Zealand rose steadily from just over 2,000 hectares in 2000 to nearly 12,000 ha in 2008. Over the same period, the total area planted with Pinot Noir, the other fashionable variety, rose from just over 1,000 ha to approaching 5,000 ha.
New Zealand Winegrowers chief executive Philip Gregan is quoted in this article as admitting about the 2009 harvest, ‘We'd hoped it would be a bit smaller. We thought it might be down a bit. That didn't eventuate because of an increase of 2,000 hectares that came into production. We certainly don't need any more grapevines planted. We have plenty of supply at the moment, and it's clear that we have more than enough [production].’
Meanwhile, Montana, the dominant company which has long bought the majority of grapes grown in Gisborne, famous for its Chardonnay, has announced that it is cancelling contracts with grape growers.
It's just as well that wine quality from the better producers seems more encouraging than ever, as I will be reporting with a series of NZ tasting notes on Thursday and an overview on Saturday.