Team C&J
As frequent sippers of French Burgundy and California Pinot Noirs, the rise of Pinot Noir in this region intrigued us into sampling this bottling from the Awatere Valley’s Otu Estate.
Otu Wine Estate is an imprint brand of the Chinese-owned wine syndicate Marlborough Wines Estates.
The company’s largest shareholder – Marlborough Wine Estates entered the New Zealand stock market, NZX (New Zealand Exchange) in 2016 – is Min (James) Jia, who is also the group’s Executive Chairman.
When MWE began scouting investment properties in New Zealand, their focus was squarely on Sauvignon Blanc, the region’s iconic varietal. In fact, when they purchased what is now Otu Wine Estate, they planted the vineyards exclusively for the white grape. The original winemaker, Switzerland’s Jan Kux, also saw an opportunity to explore Marlborough’s ability to produce another French grape, Pinot Noir, and he soon set about planting a small block.
Kux left Otu in 2020, and the company went on to hire Jeff Clarke, one of the most respected winemakers in New Zealand, with some critics even going so far as to call him “one of the six best winemakers in the world.”
Clarke cut his teeth at the legendary wine brand, Penfolds and then traveled to New Zealand, where he worked for nearly two decades at Montana Wines. Winemaker Jeff Clarke has a light touch when it comes to crafting world-class Sauvignon Blancs. Noted critic James Suckling has called his white wines “mouthwatering and intense.”
Besides Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, the other wines in the Otuwhero Estate portfolio include Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Syrah, and several rosé wines.
When it comes to grape growing in Marlborough, there are three sub-regions that wine connoisseurs watch: the Wairau Valley, the Southern Valleys, and the Awatere Valley, where this Otu Estate Pinot Noir hails from.
Given the differences in terroir and microclimatic changes, each region offers a different influence on Pinot Noir grapes. While the Wairau Valley produces Pinots, which are bright, light-bodied wines with plenty of aromatics, the Southern Valleys produce just the opposite: bigger, rounder wines with pronounced layers of spice.
The cooler Awatere climate tends to share similarities with Wairau in that its wines are pleasantly aromatic, with full, perfumed bouquets on the nose, vibrant palates, and a light, lean structure.
Awatere experiences a long growing season, thanks to endless sunshine and the dramatic diurnal shift of cool ocean air. But these cooling winds and the extended time on the vine are also significant risks for growers. When vines begin to flower, gusty and sustained wind flow can blow the flowers right off of the vine, which means smaller vine yields. The flip side to this is that the winds also cause the fruit to develop a thicker skin, which ultimately can build structure in a wine.
Like most other wine regions in New Zealand, the most prolific grape in the Awatere Valley is Sauvignon Blanc, making up roughly 61% of the total grapes produced. Pinot Noir comes in at a far second, with a modest 23% of total production. Other varieties of note in Awatere are Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling, and Gruner Veltliner.
In the glass, the 2020 Otu Estate Pinot Noir is a pale purple with bright clarity. When examining the nose of this wine, the first thing that jumps out at you is a wave of intense smoke and cedar. More traditional notes of black cherry and plum follow.
Similar to the nose, the palate is pretty rustic and wild but not in a way that feels balanced. We encountered a sort of earthy-mineral-like gravel, more cedar and smoke, and the unexpected addition of olive. Our overall impression of this New Zealand Pinot Noir was that it was overly thin and not very balanced. It almost had a “green” quality to it that doesn’t really jive with the tasting notes on the brand’s website that claim luscious red fruit and an opulent palate.
This Pinot Noir bottling from Otu Estate just wasn’t that compelling for us. New Zealand is on a lot of wine lovers’ radars when it comes to up and coming Pinot Noir regions, but we didn’t connect with this producer’s interpretation of this Burgundian grape. Given all of the rave reviews of Otu’s Sauvignon Blancs, we would be interested to see how winemaker Clarke’s talents translate to that grape.
New Zealand
Awatere Valley
Pinot Noir
13.5
Jeff Clarke
62–68°F / 16–20°C
Burgundy
30 to 60 Minutes
Now
OTU Estate
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