Ten years of Méthode Marlborough
New Zealand wine enthusiasts have a deepening understanding and growing appreciation of sparkling wine, says Mel Skinner, Chair of Méthode Marlborough and co-owner of Esse in Kaikōura.
A hundred guests travelled between three venues in two buses on 26 March, learning about the evolution of sparkling wine production in Marlborough as they travelled.
Once at the destination - Wither Hills, Spy Valley, then Saint Clair Vineyard Kitchen - guests toasted the initiative's success with 12 different sparkling wines, each paired with gourmet morsels.
Group Chair Dan Taylor says Covid-19 lockdowns seem to have impacted on Champagne sales in the UK, "which have gone off the chart", perhaps because of "people having more money in their pocket, at the expense of other activities and spending it on something that they have a passion for".
That's impacting on New Zealand as well, with Sparkling Wine being a growing category in terms of wine exports, he adds. "So the big thing for Méthode Marlborough now is how to continue that growth."
