Champagne house G.H. Mumm has launched a New Zealand sparkling wine range, marrying cool-climate Marlborough grapes with French heritage.

It’s exciting news for Australian Mumm fans as the French bubbles are the country’s biggest selling Champagne.

Mumm Marlborough Brut NV and Mumm Marlborough Rosé 2015 are made using the same classic Champagne-making techniques as Maison Mumm (méthode traditionelle), with both wines made from the classic trio of grapes Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Meunier.

Pinot Noir plays the starring role the signature of the famous G.H. Mumm Champagne house, and in this instance showcases the unique Marlborough terroir with fresh, vibrant and aromatically intense wines.

Mumm Marlborough Brut is a non-vintage cuvée that has been left to age for three years on lees, with the wine revealing notes of fresh fruit such as pear, apricot, peach, cherry, plum and citrus, complemented by honey and biscuit.

Mumm Marlborough Rosé 2015 is a vintage cuvée made from the best parcels of fruit in the vineyards, then aged for four years revealing flavours of small red berries, cranberries and rose petals, complemented by notes of shortbread.

The wines form part of the Mumm Terroir Collection, an assembly of sparkling wines created in collaboration with G.H. Mumm from the world’s unique terroirs. Established 40 years ago with the historic first outpost in the Napa Valley, Mumm Terroir is focused on celebrating the best sparkling wines in the world from the most celebrated wine regions.

Chief Winemaker, Jamie Marfell, who has been crafting sparkling wines in the Marlborough region for close to two decades, said: “The vineyards are located in the Wairau Valley and Southern Valleys and have very different soil structures which allow us to grow very different grapes and create some really exceptional wines.

“The well-drained soils in the Wairau Valley create very aromatic grapes, while the soil created during the ice age in the Southern Valleys gives rise to grapes with more body and mouthfeel.

“It is the blend of these two styles of grapes that contributes to the singular style of Mumm Marlborough wines, that are characterised by their elegance, wealth of aromas and vivacity.”

Mumm Marlborough Brut NV and Mumm Marlborough Rosé 2015 are available at liquor retailers in
Australia and New Zealand for an RRP of $35 for the Brut and $40 for the Vintage Rosé.

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