Ata Rangi, Martinborough Pinot Noir

Ata Rangi, meaning ‘dawn sky, new beginning’ in Te Reo Māori, is widely regarded to be among New Zealand’s finest and most sought-after Pinot Noir producers. Longtime winemaker Helen Masters, who joined Ata Rangi in 2003, has played a key role in building this reputation. Rebecca Gibb MW (Vinous) comments that she “nails it every year, whither the season”, making wines that “always manage to balance ripeness of fruit with a delicate hand”. In 2019, Helen was awarded New Zealand Winemaker of the Year by Gourmet Traveller WINE magazine.

Ata Rangi is owned and managed by Clive Paton, his partner Phyll and sister Alison. In 1980, Clive planted a bare, stony paddock at the edge of Martinborough, becoming one of just a handful of people pioneering grape growing in the area. Ata Rangi’s first vineyard covered less than five hectares of vines, planted on deep, free-draining alluvial gravels that mark the original course of a local river that flows from the hills flanking the valley's eastern side. Clive was an early champion of the now-famed ‘Abel’ Pinot Noir Clone, having purchased 3,000 cuttings of it from Malcolm Abel's west-Auckland vineyard in the 1980s. Also known as the ‘gum boot clone’, the cuttings are purported to come from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and were smuggled to New Zealand in a gum boot before Malcolm Abel, a customs officer, confiscated them in the 1970s. These remarkable vines are now Ata Rangi’s oldest and are used to make the fabled Ata Rangi Pinot Noir, which is textural, deep and seamlessly balanced; it has long been the standard bearer for Martinborough Pinot Noir.

‘McCrone’, ‘Kotinga’ and ‘Masters’ are three single-vineyard Pinot Noirs made by Ata Rangi in tiny quantities, offering distinct, site-specific expressions of this famed grape. ‘McCrone’, from a vineyard planted in 2001, just around the corner from Ata Rangi’s home block, on soils with a significantly higher clay content, produces a silkier wine than the classic, textural style of Martinborough Pinot Noir. The ‘Kotinga’ come from a 3-hectare vineyard at the edge of the Martinborough Terrace. ‘Kotinga’ is aged in 2,280-litre foudres to enhance the bright, crunchy qualities of the Dijon clones grown on this site’s free-draining loess and alluvial gravel soils. The ‘Masters’ vineyard is owned and farmed by Ata Rangi winemaker Helen Masters and her family. As the most southerly of the Ata Rangi sites, it is generally harvested around one to two weeks later than the other vineyards. Ground spice complements the fresh red berry aromas and flavours of this wine, which is elegant, layered and dynamic with fine tannins and supple acidity.

Ata Rangi’s ‘Crimson’ Pinot Noir, produced from vines aged between 5 and 25 years, is inspired by New Zealand’s red-flowering native pōhutakawa and rātā trees. Sales of this wine support Project Crimson, a charitable conservation trust which plants and protects these trees across the country. Clive is an avid conservationist, planting more than 75,000 native trees at Ata Rangi’s ‘bush block,’ 20 minutes south of Martinborough. In 2012, Clive was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his contribution to both viticulture and conservation in New Zealand.

The ’Potiki’ Chardonnay, Māori for ‘last born’, is a blend of newer plantings and more established blocks in the Martinborough Terrace. Fermented in 300-litre puncheons and aged for 11 months on lees, it displays impressive poise and focus, derived from the deep alluvial gravel soils. Outside of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Ata Rangi also dabble in Pinot Gris. Influenced by the wines of Alsace, their Pinot Gris is fermented in large barrels and aged on lees for six months, resulting in a wine of lovely weight and texture.