2007 New Zealand

This is a vintage about quality, not quantity.

Cool and wet conditions during flowering affected fruit set and diminished the crop by as far as 20% when compared to last year, with Marlborough being the hardest hit region. However lower yields have positively affected ripening of the fruit, and the wines, especially the whites, reflect the vineyard conditions, displaying lush, intense flavours. Pinot Noir (particularly in Central Otago) is also concentrated and robustly structured.

Producers compare the 2007 vintage with the suberb 2002. Hawkes Bay and Gisborne are probably the most successful regions.