Finding a special place

Te Muna translates as ‘special or secret place’. But it’s no longer a secret that some very special wines are emerging from this valley 10 minutes outside the Martinborough Wine Village.

By  Sue McLeary. Photo by Pete Monk.

The Te Muna vineyards sit on a natural escarpment sitting above the Huarangarua River on ancient gravels, under the watchful eye of Kupe’s canoes.

The Donald and Campbell families farmed the land for generations. By the 1990s they were intrigued by the vineyards and acclaimed wines coming out of the small Martinborough township a few clicks down the road. 

Spotting an opportunity, they planted 1-acre blocks of grapes as a promotional lure. Ian Campbell is said to have planted the first grapes in 1989 on land now leased by Big Sky vineyard. And the sauvignon blanc is described as “beautiful”. 

Wellington barrister Colin Carruthers was the first to commit, buying 11.5 hectares of sheep farm from John and Trish Donald in 1996. 

That was a busy year along Te Muna Road. John Douglas (Te Hera) planted the first grapes “before we actually secured title, to make sure we didn’t miss a year’s growth” he laughs.

Across the road, Martinborough’s first professional winemaker Larry McKenna bought 25 ha high above the river to create Escarpment Wines, and Wim Julicher bought the stony riverbed terrace site next door for what is now Julicher Wines.  

Further down the road, Hawkes Bay-based Craggy Range bought an initial 120ha, planting from 1999. By the end of the century, there were thousands of vines in the ground. Colin Carruthers and Deborah Coddington planted pinot noir and pinot gris, and other varieties in 2003, adopting the Te Muna Valley brand.

So what’s special about wine made in the Te Muna Valley? Simply, the answer’s in the soil.

John Douglas has worked his land for nearly 25 years and believes “great wines are made from great grapes grown in great vineyards”.

He says the Te Muna valley is “an extension of the prestigious Martinborough Terrace. The vineyard has a small layer of topsoil overlaying 25 metres of alluvial gravels, from the Huangarua River flooding over centuries.”

The gravels are fundamental, along with Martinborough’s great grape-growing climate: sun, wind, low rainfall and what he describes as “intimidating spring frosts and long dry warm autumns, to produce accountant-shaking low volumes of high-quality fruit”.

Further up the size scale, is Larry McKenna and his 25 ha Escarpment Wines vineyard. Nicknamed Larry McPinot, he is credited with putting Martinborough pinot noir on the map, winning major international trophies in the 1990s.

“I believe in the Martinborough Terrace, the long narrow strip of river gravels running through Martinborough’s northern edge. The Golden Mile.

“Te Muna is simply a natural extension of that terrace. It’s all part of the same river terrace and soil type, with a slightly higher elevation. It’s slightly cooler in winter and slightly warmer in summer, and often a bit windier as it’s more exposed.

“Essentially, the alluvial, free-draining gravel soil is why we’re all here. The Martinborough Terrace represents 80 percent of the district’s wines, and it all starts with the Huarangarua River.”

Next door at Julicher Wines changes are taking place. With no previous wine experience, Wim Julicher bought 20 ha of bare stony land in 1996 and turned it into an international award-winning winery with his partner Sue Darling. Retiring recently, they sold the property to cousins Brad and Warren Butterworth. Martin Bell continues as winemaker, and Certified Sommelier Nick Hewitt is General Manager.

Katherine Jacobs and Jeremy Corban own Big Sky Wines further up the valley, and say, “Te Muna is like Martinborough with the knobs turned up”.

“There’s more of most things. More diurnal variations (the difference between day and night temperatures), hotter summers, colder winters which can produce smaller berries with more tannins. The fruit is more vibrant, with a savoury earthiness plus a backbone of sweetness, which produces interesting often powerful flavours.

“We want the fruit to speak for itself, with minimal intervention in the winery. We’re quite hands-off.

“The people factor is also important”, Katherine says. “There’s a lot of co-operation along Te Muna Road, with many deep, interesting conversations about wine-making, sharing ideas and equipment, and analytical professional tasting, constructive critiques.”

Last year Big Sky opened an appointment-only tasting room, a first for the valley.  Katherine and Jeremy enjoy sitting down with their guests, tasting and talking about the wines. “It’s especially rewarding to see people come back again and again, often bringing friends”.

Largely hidden from public view towards the White Rock Road end of Te Muna Road, Craggy Range is by far the largest Te Muna vineyard. The original site of 120 ha was expanded in 2018 when the company acquired a further 132 ha from the Donald family. These are the new vines at their spindly stage, at the town end of the road. 

At the time, then Head Winemaker Matt Stafford said "The unique characters that we are seeing from subtle soil variations within our current Te Muna Road Vineyard are being accentuated with vine age and the potential to expand on this with new plantings and enhance our quality is immense.

“The higher terrace with its very old, stony clay infused soils is perfect for pinot noir; on the lower terrace there are younger stony soils interleaved with limestone, providing an excellent environment for sauvignon blanc”.

Craggy Range’s owners, the Peabody family originally from the USA, set up an unusual 1000-year Trust, so the company cannot be sold outside the family.

Vineyard Manager Anton Stadniczenko says, “That philosophy heavily influences all the decisions. They see this as a family heirloom property ­– they personally planted some of the early vines.

“They say they also planted a few family heirlooms in the vineyard too, to express their commitment to this land and the wine it produces. Their strategic goal is to produce wine ‘we can pour with pride’. The Te Muna site certainly delivers: the top-shelf Aroha Pinot Noir sells for $150 a bottle.

“We knew this site is a bit of a climate knife-edge. Our dam and bore support a highly effective sprinkler system for fighting frosts. We have a big native trees and shrub planting programme starting this winter, covering around 70ha of land not suitable for grapes. That’s also our 1000-year philosophy in action.”  

So – can we distinguish between ‘town’ and ‘Te Muna’ wines?

None of the players really accept the notion. John Douglas says the differences are between the winemakers’ styles, not generally the fruit quality, although some sites are more frost-prone than others.

Asked if he thinks wine lovers would taste the difference between a Te Muna Pinot Noir and a Martinborough Pinot Noir, Larry McKenna doesn’t think so.

 “I don’t like separating out town from Te Muna.  The vineyards are all part of the same river alluvial system, with similar soil types, and produce very similar, high quality wines. It’s all about those free-draining soils”.

Yes, Te Muna is a very special place.