Marlborough Winemakers Wine Options 2013 – Round One

Marlborough Wine Options – Round One, 2013

For a number of years, a group of Marlborough winemakers has conducted a series of wine options competitions held over the colder four months of the year for the wider Marlborough winemaking fraternity. It has now grown to become a significant event on the Marlborough calendar with around 30 teams involved, strong sponsorship by suppliers to the wine industry, and a healthy budget to spend on the wines, and host responsibility in terms of food and transport for the participants. I see a huge benefit for the Marlborough winemakers in that a high proportion of those who attend are the younger, up-and-coming people, and these people are being exposed to wines they may not normally taste, drink or buy. The perspectives they may gain can be very important in how Marlborough wine can develop.

The organising committee including Bec Wiffen, Brett Bermingham, Helen Morrison and Pati Miranda have asked me to conduct the first game in the season regularly. It is a wonderful opportunity to meet some of the personnel coming up through the ranks, as well as having a lot of fun. The wine options game was held at Drylands restaurant, with Dietmar Schnarre and his team providing outstanding service and support yet again. This year, there was a feeling of seriousness in the participation, with the attendees really wanting to do well. I was surprised by the number of teams that were made up of members from different wineries, indicating a strong fraternity across the region. It is a good sign of the strength of the human side in the Marlborough industry.

Following are the major results of Round One of the Marlborough Winemakers Wine Options, with a list of the wines served, as well as the final scores for all the teams:

1^st, 105 points (max. 150), (after a tie-break): ‘Truckin’ Beers Hours Later’, with Sarah Burton, Bec Wiffen, Alans McGettigan and James Macdonald

2^nd, 105 points, (after a tie-break): ‘The Good Punts’

3^rd, 100 points, (after a tie-break): ‘Nice Rack’

4^th, 100 points, (after a tie-break): ‘The Veltliner Underground’

Runner-Up to Last Place, 50 points: ‘Villa Maria V-necks’

Last Place, 40 points: Undo-Ordinary

The ‘Last Man Standing’ winner was Andy Fitzpatrick (Mr Bec Wiffen), who took away a bottle of Moet & Chandon Rosé Champagne

The wines served were:

Felton Road Bannockburn Central Otago Riesling 2012

Escarpment Vineyard Martinborough Pinot Noir 2011 (individual game wine)

Speri Valpolicella Classico Superiore Appassimento ‘Sant Urbano’ 2009

Finca La Celia ‘Heritage’ Uco Valley Mendoza Malbec 2008

Craggy Range ‘Le Sol’ Gimblett Gravels Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2010

The final scores for all the teams were: