New Zealand wine is produced in several mostly maritime, cool climate winegrowing regions of New Zealand, an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. Like many other New World wines, it is usually produced and labelled as single varietal wines, or if blended the varietal components are listed on the label. New Zealand is famous for its Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, and more recently its dense, concentrated Pinot Noir from Marlborough, Martinborough and Central Otago.
The first vines are thought to have been introduced by missionary Samuel Marsden, and official British Resident James Busby is credited with producing wine at Kerikeri in 1833. The modern wine industry in New Zealand began in the mid-20th century and expanded rapidly in the early 21st century, averaging 17% per annum in the first two decades. In 2017, New Zealand produced 285 million litres from 37,129 hectares (91,750 acres) of vineyard area, about three-quarters of which is dedicated to Sauvignon Blanc. Nearly 90% of total production is exported, chiefly to the United States, Britain and Australia, reaching a record NZ$1.66 billion in export revenue in 2017. In each of the previous 10 years, New Zealanders consumed a fairly constant 20 litres of wine per adult, about a third of which was imported from other countries, mainly Australia. (Full article...)