This month, New Zealand’s Cloudy Bay winery is releasing a new expression of pinot noir in Australia through Moët-Hennessy. Te Wahi (RRP $119) speaks to the Central Otago region, where Cloudy Bay recently started sourcing pinot noir grapes from, and is a light and easy-drinking style and great food wine. Here we chat with Cloudy Bay Estate Director, Ian Morden, about the current wine trends, Cloudy Bay winery, Te Wahi and its launch in Australia.

drinks bulletin: Pinot noir is Cloudy Bay’s largest growing varietal. What’s driving its popularity?

Ian Morden: Modern palates are moving towards wines that are fresher, lighter and higher in acidity and better food wines, and pinot noir very much fits into that category.

People are also looking for wines with a story and provenance – they want to know where their wine comes from. I think pinot noir is a great conversation wine. Also you can’t really fake a good pinot, it has got to come from good vineyards.

DB: Tell us about where Cloudy Bay is located.

IM: Cloudy Bay is located in the perfect place for growing pinot noir; in the cool, temperate wine region of Marlborough. We are concentrated in the Southern Valleys, which have clay soils, so they are not as free draining as the soils on the valley floor.

Over the last five or six years we have also very consciously acquired some great pinot vineyards, of which there are not many in New Zealand. So we have a prime collection now. We have the two in Marlborough and more recently we have acquired a site in Central Otago.

DB: Why was the name Te Wahi chosen for the new wine? 

IM: Te Wahi means ‘the place’, so it links the wine back to this idea of provenance and how it’s critical to have a great vineyard and source of good grapes.

We have tried to create a more restrained, elegant and fresher style of pinot noir from Central Otago with Te Wahi. The fruit was sourced from the most southerly and continental pinot noir terroir in the region. It’s really quite unique.

DB: Who is the target audience for this wine?

IM: It’s someone who knows a little bit about pinot noir and is looking for something special and unique with a new expression and a way of looking at what Central Otago has to offer.

DB: What would you pair Te Wahi with?

IM: Te Wahi is really versatile. It pairs well with game, such as duck, and salmon. It also goes really nicely with Japanese cuisine.

DB: When will the wine be available?

IM: We’re releasing Te Wahi in Australia this month.

DB: How are you launching Te Wahi in Australia?

IM: We’re running a series called the ‘Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir Salon’. In each session we take trade and consumers through an intimate tasting of all the wines that have inspired Cloudy Bay’s style of pinot noir. We’re holding them in London, Australia, Tokyo and New York.

DB: How much of Cloudy Bay’s sales does Australia represent?

IM: It represents about 22 per cent of our global sales. Australia is a very important market for us both historically and currently. It’s a heartland market – Australia and the UK were where Cloudy Bay’s reputation was made. Australia has also been very receptive to New Zealand pinot and we see great potential here for Cloudy Bay.