Matawhero Pinot Gris 2011 Gisborne

Gisborne is not the place you’d expect Pinot Gris to be grown, actually Gisborne is all but forgotten about when people talk about the wine regions of New Zealand. One feels that the region has a long way to go to get back on the tip of people’s tongues.

Matawhero have seen the highs and lows of the region. Initially established as a grape grower in 1968, and by the mid 1970s they soon started making their own wine, under the Matawhero label. In 2008 the young enterprising Searle family bought it. Gisborne has come a long way since, and Gisborne winemaking and viticulture has also progressed.

Gisborne’s climate is not what one would call cool climate, actually it’s very Mediterranean. Bathed in sunshine during Summer, and just as wet as the rest of NZ during Winter. So how does Pinot Gris fair in this climate?

Matawhero Pinot Gris 2011 definitely tastes of sunshine. The white fleshed peach gives it sweetness, slmost too much and too obvious, but fortunately the palate is held together by some youthful citrus acidity. Hints of Summer spill from the bottle as soon as it’s opened, this finishes once the last drop is drunk.

Matawhero Pinot Gris is definitely more generous and tropical than the steely Marlborough/ Central Otago wines.

86 Points
4 Stars
RRP $26

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Written by Jayson Bryant

Jayson’s roots in wine began when his father literally dragged him round France and injected his passion into him. From the age of 8 his family took month long holidays in France travelling through all regions and sampling their wine.
UnScrewed has reinvented the concept of wine tasting in New Zealand and along the way found a new and willing audience. In addition to encouraging straightforward wine tasting, Jayson educates viewers about the effects of regional factors (soil, sun, wind) on wine flavours, and how to buy wine.

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