Changing the mix at Nga Waka

By Joelle Thomson

There’s a changing of the guard, so to speak, at Nga Waka Wines this year. Founder and long term winemaker Roger Parkinson has resigned after 32 years of continuous winemaking. He will be replaced by fellow winemaker Paul Mason, who is currently finishing up 20 years at Martinborough Vineyards.

The wine community has enormous respect for both Parkinson (whose outstanding winemaking and devotion to dry Riesling, sparked by his wine studies in South Australia, will be sorely missed) and to Mason. He is an apt replacement as an experienced winemaker with in-depth knowledge of the region, the village and its vineyards.

Nga Waka is now owned by Jay Short and Peggy Dupey, who have acquired existing vineyard sites from other brands and also, excitingly, added Chenin Blanc and Gamay to their plantings. Watch this space.

New Mason Rosé

The Hidden Vineyard is a sunny gem at the southern end of Te Muna Valley and is the new home of Paul and Amy Mason’s new Mason Rosé and, soon, a Pinot Noir. The one hectare site was planted by the late Bill Brink in 2002 in six different clones of Pinot Noir and has had patchy production until now. 

“Te Muna Valley typically gets 10% fewer crops than vineyards around Martinborough village,” says Paul Mason, who attributes this to stronger winds in Te Muna. 

The 2024 Mason Hidden Valley Rosé is RRP $36.

Escarpment releases 2022 Pinot Noirs

Four of New Zealand’s iconic Pinot Noirs were released by winemaker Tim Bourne at Escarpment Vineyard in late June. Kupe, Pahi, Kiwa and Te Rehua are the eponymous name of both the vineyard sites they come from and the wines themselves. They have been made every year since 2006. This is the third vintage that Bourne has produced them in the new Escarpment winery and the first year in which three of the four single vineyard wines have been made from vineyards in Te Muna Valley.

* Wines featured in this column are available at Martinborough Wine Merchants.