Upscale New Zealand Players Cloudy Bay And Loveblock Look Beyond Sauvignon Blanc

Two of New Zealand wine’s most prominent luxury players—Cloudy Bay and Loveblock—see openings to diversify the kiwi category by moving beyond the core Sauvignon Blanc varietal and secondary offering Pinot Noir—but they aren’t necessarily agreed on what comes next.

Created by New Zealand industry veterans Kim and Erica Crawford following the 2003 sale of their Kim Crawford brand to Vincor (now part of Constellation), Loveblock launched in the U.S. in 2013. With production currently around 25,000 cases—of which 80% is exported to the U.S.—Loveblock is led by its Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc ($26), which accounts for the vast majority of its U.S. sales. “Ten years ago I was thinking, ‘we’ve got to find something else,’ because the Sauvignon Blanc bubble is going to burst, but it hasn’t,” says Erica Crawford, who serves as CEO of Loveblock.

Eyeing future upside in Pinot Noir, in 2002 the Crawfords acquired a 100-acre block in Marlborough’s Awatere Valley to produce Pinot for the Kim Crawford brand. But today, Crawford says, “you can’t sell Marlborough Pinot Noir for love or money. Central Otago has become the benchmark for New Zealand Pinot. So we’re top-grafting about 10 acres a year of Sauvignon Blanc on Pinot Noir in Marlborough, and we’ll probably have to speed that process up.”

Loveblock, imported by Terlato Wines, is also making gains with its Central Otago Pinot Noir ($34) from a small base, and it’s seeding growth on its Marlborough Pinot Gris ($26). “Pinot Gris is the natural third frontier,” says Crawford. “We try to create a Pinot Gris that’s varietally correct, but has a bit more mouthfeel and texture. New Zealand has planted a lot of Pinot Gris as a whole, and I think we can make it well.”

Moët Hennessy’s Cloudy Bay, one of New Zealand wine’s pioneering brands, likewise leans on Sauvignon Blanc for most of its 40,000-45,000-case U.S. volume, and it too has made inroads with Pinot Noir. But senior winemaker Tim Heath tells SND that Chardonnay, not Pinot Gris, will be the third focus varietal. “Chardonnay is an underrated grape in New Zealand. It doesn’t get as much attention as it deserves,” Heath notes.

While Cloudy Bay looks to enhance its presence in Chardonnay, its core Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc ($31) continues to garner accolades, earning a spot among Wine Spectator’s Top 100 Wines of 2015. Three years ago Cloudy Bay added a luxury Central Otago Pinot Noir, Te Wahi ($75), to its lineup, and Heath says the winery is now “toying with potentially releasing some single-vineyard wines looking ahead. But we’ll take our time. We won’t do it just to do it. We need to find the parts of our vineyard sites that truly have something interesting to say.”

News Briefs:

•Pernod Ricard has opened the latest distillery in its Our/Vodka program with its launch of Our/Los Angeles. Established in collaboration with creative agency founders Steven Ocheltree and Tyler Simmons, the Our/Los Angeles micro-distillery is based in downtown L.A.’s Arts District and will produce a vodka made with locally-sourced ingredients, retailing at $20 a 375-ml. The distillery marks the sixth outpost in Pernod’s Our/Vodka program, through which the company partners with entrepreneurs in different cities around the world to produce locally-inspired vodkas.

•Sonoma-based V2 Wine Group has extended its alliance with Healdsburg’s Dry Creek Vineyard, and will continue to serve as Dry Creek’s exclusive sales and marketing agent in the U.S. market. Dry Creek, which initially aligned with V2 in 2011, produces Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon and Meritage blends and has 185 acres of sustainably farmed vineyards. V2’s portfolio also includes Bouchaine Vineyards, La Follette, Merryvale, Toad Hollow and Steelhead, among other brands, with retail prices ranging from $15-$100 a bottle.

•Save Me San Francisco, the collaboration between The Wine Group and the band Train, has added Marry Me Rosé to its range. A California-sourced, Grenache-based blend, Marry Me Rosé is launching nationally, retailing at around $15 a bottle. Introduced in 2011, the Save Me San Francisco brand reached 175,000 cases last year, according to Impact Databank.

•Champagne Palmer has expanded its West Coast presence with entry into three new markets. Champagne Palmer’s full U.S. lineup—including Brut Reserve, Rosé Reserve, Blanc de Blancs and Amazone de Palmer ($49-$140 a 750-ml.)—is set to roll out out across Colorado, Washington and Arizona, bringing the brand’s footprint to a total of 10 states. Imported by González Byass USA, Champagne Palmer made its U.S. debut last year, launching in California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York and Texas. The house’s annual production is around 80,000 cases.

Craft Brewing and Distilling News:

•Illinois-based FEW Spirits is introducing Brainville Rye Whiskey this October in collaboration with rock band The Flaming Lips. Brainville Rye is made from a combination of rye, corn and malted barley grown within 150 miles of the FEW distillery, and aged in new, charred American oak barrels custom-made in Minnesota. Featuring a psychedelic label created by designer Justin Helton, Brainville is 80-proof and will retail at $125 a 750-ml. bottle. It will debut across key FEW markets this fall in a limited edition of 5,000 bottles.

•Narragansett Beer has released summer seasonal Town Beach IPA, a 4.7% abv session IPA. Town Beach IPA is brewed with pale, cara pils and wheat malts, and Pacific Gem, Green Bullet, nugget, and EKG hops, then dry-hopped with citra hops. It’s rolling out from now through the end of summer in six-packs of 16-ounce tallboy cans ($9-$10) throughout New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Virginia, as well as Portland, Oregon and Nashville and Chattanooga, Tennessee.

•Arizona-based Hamilton Distillers is launching single malt whiskey range Whiskey Del Bac across a number of markets, partnering with Atlanta sales and consulting group Crafted Brands on the rollout. Produced from 100% two-row barley sourced primarily from Arizona’s BKW Farms and southwestern Colorado, Whiskey Del Bac is set to debut in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Texas and Florida.

Recently in the News:

• Korbel Rides Sparkling Wine Wave To New Heights
• Rum Giants Bacardi And Captain Morgan Double Down On Millennial Appeal
• TWE Sheds 12 Non-Core Brands As Streamlining Continues