Cromwell winemaker tops national awards

Accolades continue to flow for Cromwell winemaker Matt Connell and Alexandra Basin wines at the latest wine awards, finds Rebecca Fox.

Cromwell winemaker Matt Connell has been named Wine Maker of the Show at the New Zealand International Wine Show.

Wines made by Connell have been awarded some of the show’s top honours including two champion trophies, and double gold and gold awards.

The show, New Zealand’s largest and most prestigious wine awards, attracted 1880 entries.

The wines were judged by a team of 20 led by master of wine Bob Campbell.

"It was good to do well in," Connell says.

Connell, a contract winemaker, not only made award-winning wines for Alexandra Basin vineyards Eight Ranges, Three Miners and McArthur Ridge and North Canterbury winery Tiki, he also made his own gold-winning pinot noir, Rendition 2020 (the fourth year his pinot has won gold).

He made two of the champion wines from the show, both for McArthur Ridge — Lilico Rose 2021 and Southern Tor Pinot Noir 2020.

The winning wines were not just Central Otago favourite pinot noirs, but also another rose — Three Miners Rocker Box Pinot Noir Rose 2021 — which won gold, a 2021 pinot gris from Eight Ranges which won double gold (which requires a unanimous gold medal score from the judges), a 2021 riesling from Three Miners and a single-vineyard sauvignon blanc from Tiki which won gold.

It was the success of so many wines that contributed to him winning the winemaker of the show award, he believes.

"It is nice to be recognised for how much effort is put in."

But he also sees the trophies and medals as a tribute to the hard work of the vineyard crews — especially those at McArthur Ridge, including vineyard manager Murray Petrie — producing such good fruit.

"They’ve done a lot of work and I’m happy for them, they deserve it."

Other Central Otago vineyards also got medals. Fellow Alexandra wineries Eight Ranges (Trail Rider Pinot Gris 2021) and Shaky Bridge (Pioneer Series Pinot Noir 2020) got double gold, while golds went to Shaky Bridge (Pioneer Series Pinot Gris 2021), Ruru (Pinot Gris 2021), Roaring Meg (Pinot Gris 2021) from Mt Difficulty’s Cromwell vineyards, Mud House Central Otago vineyard (Pinot Noir 2020) and Bannockburn’s Akarua (Pinot Noir 2020).

Connell says Alexandra vineyards did particularly well at the show and that shows the subregion is not the poor cousin to some of the others.

"Alexandra is often not recognised as I think it should be. The wine equals any of the other subregions."

Wanaka vineyards Aitken’s Folly (Riverbank Road Chardonnay 2019 and Pinot Noir 2017) also won gold as did Nanny Goat Vineyard, Queensberry (Chardonnay 2020) and Valli’s Bendigo vineyard (Pinot Noir 2019). Queenstown’s Nockie’s Palette Georgetown Pinot Noir (2017) also won gold.

Getting the recognition came at the right time for Connell, who is just about to open a new tasting room and winery at Aurum’s former facility at Lowburn.

He has run out of room for what he wanted to do at his previous facility and is now putting in new infrastructure at Aurum.

"It gives me full control. It’ll be at the size I want it to be for the next 15 years until I retire."

While Covid-19 has produced tough times, Connell says the grapes keep growing.

"Central Otago wine has the benefit of ageing. Wine sales might have slowed down but you’ve got to get on with it..."

Connell is no stranger to awards. Last year the pinot noir he made for McArthur Ridge, Brassknocker, won the champion pinot noir at the New World Wine Awards which recognises top quality wines priced under $25.

While at Bannockburn’s Akarua, each of his pinots from his first in 2009 to his last in 2015 won major trophies.

Many of the vineyards and others from the region also won silver and bronze medals.

The New Zealand International Wine Show is New Zealand’s largest wine competition attracting entries from not only New Zealand but also from Australia, the United States, France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Argentina, Chile, Germany and Georgia.