Central Otago winemaker Matt Connell is having a great year with his wines, winning national and international awards. Rebecca Fox catches up with Connell as he recovers from winning Champion Wine at the New Zealand International Wine Awards.
A few years ago, Matt Connell predicted Alexandra wines, often sidelined in the Central Otago wine story, would begin to shine.
He made that prediction when he was named winemaker of the year at the New Zealand International Wine Show in 2022 and two years later he and the McArthur Ridge team celebrated, the Alexandra-grown, Southern Tor Pinot Noir 2023 being named Wine of the Show.
The show, New Zealand’s largest and most prestigious wine awards, comes on the back of a great year for Southern Tor 2022 with the wine making the prestigious Decanter World Wine Awards 2024 Top 50 Best in Show - the only New Zealand wine to do so - getting gold at the National Wine Awards of Aotearoa New Zealand and McArthur Ridges’ Brassknocker Pinot Noir being named in the New World Top 50.
"Wine of show was different, because that’s obviously what the judges consider to be the best wine in the competition. And it’s a real kudos to the whole team there. So it was a good night."
Connell, who is a contract winemaker based in Cromwell, believes the sub-regions in Central Otago are all different. There is more complexity in Alexandra’s wines as they ripen a bit later.
"They’re not quite as straightforward as those from the Cromwell basin, so they definitely have their fans and I think being able to highlight that to people has been really good."
He has been making wines for McArthur Ridge since 2020 and has won awards for the wines each year, including a New Zealand International Wine Show gold medal for McArthur Ridge Falls Dam Pinot Gris 2023 this year, but says he does not think there is a secret to his success, although his experience making wines in Central Otago since 2005 is a strength.
"I just think there’s dedication. And I have my own sort of ideas about different parts of Central and how I approach them as a winemaker that I’ve built up over years of experience.
"But it also requires hard work.
"I put a lot of effort into it. It’s definitely a seven-day-a-week lifestyle for me. It’s not really a job. It is my life. And I enjoy that. But I take it seriously, too. I appreciate people putting a lot of trust in me and I don’t take that for granted. I value the opportunity to make people’s wines and I want to see them do well. So I do try really hard to make that happen."
After each harvest, he and the team at McArthur’s Ridge review the season to look at what they could do better in a constant quest for improvement.
"But that’s also the fun part because we still get to play a lot. We get to try new things and see if we’re improving. So you start with a bit of a shotgun approach and then you refine it and that’s what we’re doing at the moment."
As in any horticultural endeavour, the weather plays a huge role and while Central Otago has got better with its frost fighting over the years, it is dealing with the changeability of the weather that is its biggest challenge these days, he says.
"It’s windier maybe for a bit longer or you get unseasonably cold snaps. It’s probably more changeable than it’s ever been. We are the most southern grape vine place in the world so you’re always going to be on the edge regardless of climate change."
In his first vintage in 2020, it was a bit cooler requiring some tough decisions on what they would pick at McArthur Ridge - luckily, they made the right choices and the wines did incredibly well.
"But it was a really good learning from that particular vintage. It was a tougher vintage for Alex because it was a bit cooler, but if we could still get the quality level right up there, that sort of gave me the confidence."
However, more recent seasons have been quite steady without any major events making "it a little bit easier to make wine".
"But they’re all different for one reason or another. Like the grape, even if you think the weather’s relatively similar one year to the next, the grapes still present themselves differently each year. They’ll have slightly different acid."
While the aim is consistency in terms of quality there should be variations from year to year.
"You’re putting sunshine into a bottle in one way or another, basically. So they’ll all be different to a degree. But it’s maintaining that level of quality regardless of the season. That’s the tricky bit. And the important part."
Winemakers also need to take into consideration what people want to drink; a preference that is changing. People are potentially looking towards lower alcohol wines.
"So we’re going to be looking at all that sort of stuff at the same time. A lot of people are starting to think about what we’re going to do that way. But at the moment, Central’s strength is still the people that live there and the grapes that are growing. We’re pretty lucky."
Connell also makes his own wine and is working to grow his brand a little more. In his wines he aims to highlight unique parcels of fruit in Central Otago. As well as making a pinot noir blend "Rendition", he also makes a range of single vineyard wines from those special parcels of land.
"That keeps me interested because it’s such a passion project. And we don’t do those single vineyards every year. We only do them in what I think are the best vintages, so we’re lucky enough that I obviously make wine to make money, but I’m making it when I think it’s really at its best."
Other Otago wineries were also in the medal lists winning New Zealand International Wine Show gold and double gold (DG) medals including the following: Te Kano Land Waitaki Chardonnay 2022 DG; Maude Reserve East Block Riesling 2024; Wet Jacket Pinot Gris 2023; Roaring Meg Sauvignon Blanc 2024 DG; Judge Rock "Innocent" Rose 2024; Maude Estate Rose 2024; Nockie’s Palette Georgetown Rose 2024 DG, Roaring Meg Rose 2024; Saddleback Rose 2023; Maude Estate Pinot Noir 2023; Mondillo Pinot Noir 2023 DG; Mora Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2023; Mt Difficulty Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2023; Nanny Goat Vineyard Single Vineyard Queensberry Pinot Noir 2023; Nanny Goat Vineyard Super Nanny Pinot Noir 2022 DG; Peregrine Pinot Noir 2022 DG; Te Kano Kin Pinot Noir 2021; Te Kano Land Northburn Pinot Noir 2022; Three Miners Warden’s Court Pinot Noir 2021; Valli Bannockburn Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 DG; Wooing Tree Rose 2024 - Champion Rose and Double Golds.
