The ‘prince of pinot noir’ pulls the cork on retirement after 35 years

From sampling the vintages in his father’s cellar to being one of New Zealand’s best pinot noir advocates, Larry McKenna’s life has been soaked in wine.

Wine has been in Larry McKenna’s blood from growing up in Australia to being dubbed ‘‘the prince of New Zealand pinot noir’’.

McKenna remembers being fascinated by the red stuff from his youth, growing up in South Australia. His father had a wine cellar and his mother was a great cook, which meant the family fully appreciated fine flavours.

‘‘Family occasions involved wine and time at the table. We had to go down to the wine cellar and look at bottles stored in the dark all on their side – there was a mystique about it as it got better as it got older.’’

Moving to Auckland in 1980 to be an assistant winemaker with Delegat, he moved to South Wairarapa in 1986.

At the age of 35, McKenna was offered a shareholding opportunity to get in at the ground floor of Martinborough Vineyard.

‘‘I had a lot of faith and a lot of vision of what the wine industry could be for this district. You didn’t care about the risk in those days, and we invested, and we really haven’t looked back.’’

When he arrived i it was ‘‘very much at the beginnings’’ with only four wineries – Ata Rangi, Dry River, Chifney [now Margrain], and Martinborough Vineyard. ‘‘86 was the second real vintage for the district.’’

Martinborough in the mid-1980s was a far cry from the popular destination it is today. ‘‘It was a rural service town for the local sheep and beef industry, and there were just two pubs, two takeaways, no restaurants and one motel. None of the tourism that’s here now.’’

After 15 years with Martinborough Vineyard, McKenna saw an opportunity to start his own vineyard in the late 1990s. With an investor in a 50/50 shareholding venture, they purchased land south of town and established Escarpment Winery on Te Muna Rd.

Three years ago his business partner opted to sell up and Escarpment was bought by top Australian winemakers Torbreck Vintners. McKenna continued to have a hand in managing the vineyard until his decision to retire.

Master of Wine Bob Campbell said the value of McKenna’s contribution had rippled far beyond Escarpment. ‘‘Larry was at the forefront of developing the reputation that New Zealand was capable of producing world-class wines. Sauvignon blanc may have opened the door for the world to learn more about New Zealand wine, but pinot noir raised the status of New Zealand wine globally.’’

McKenna remembered how they had to get on the road a lot to promote their wines in the early years and this including travelling overseas. He said buyers really appreciated their authenticity as grassroots winemakers talking about their products.

‘‘We didn’t have a marketing budget, there was no social media, there wasn’t even cellphones. We had to get on the bike and get into town and put our hands up and talk about it.’’

McKenna was a great ambassador for New Zealand’s wine, leading to Australian wine writer James Halliday labelling him ‘‘The prince of New Zealand pinot noir’’.

The pinot noir variety was always a natural fit for Martinborough, and it did well

overseas. ‘‘Today’s cuisine, today’s lifestyle suit pinot noir much better. It drinks from a very young age and ages gracefully, McKenna said. ‘‘We’re looking for something a little lighter, a little fruitier and little more easier to take.’’

Martinborough has always been a boutique growing area with a lot of focus on quality.

Nowadays there were a lot more companies making wine in the area, but still not producing huge volumes, with McKenna saying that Wairarapa, (which included Carterton and Masterton vineyards), produced just 2% of the nation’s wine but was home to 9% of our winemaking companies.

‘‘There are a lot of people looking after very small areas of grapes, so they’re getting a lot of love, a lot of attention.’’

Retirement won’t mean McKenna puts up his feet.

‘‘I’m not the sort of person to do nothing. I can’t see myself not working to some extent. It’s a huge decision. But I enjoy getting out of my comfort zone.’’

He loved getting outdoors and planned to take on some cycling and tramping adventures both in New Zealand and overseas.