A relative new-comer to the international wine market, New Zealand is increasingly making its presence felt. As in other spheres, being a new arrival can bring a number of benefits, not least the ability to learn from other people's mistakes. On the ground it means that carefully selected areas are chosen for planting on the basis of micro-climate and soil types, rather than growing grapes where they have always been planted before. In the wineries that have been built to process the rapidly growing grape harvest, new machinery and technologies have been put in place right from the start, making many of the New Zealand wineries some of the most modern in the world.

The history of wine-making in New Zealand goes back to the early 1800s, when James Busby, the pioneer of the industry, began making wine in the Bay of Islands. By the mid 1800s many emigrants arrived from wine-producing areas of France and they immediately began planting, harvesting and making wine. The industry pottered along for a hundred years or so, supplying the internal market with workaday wines and sherry and port-type drinks. Even as late as the 1920s there were fewer than 200 hectares of vines in the country. From the 1970s onwards the industry began its serious expansion, with over 3,500 hectares under vine and by then there were already over 400 commercial vineyards. Today most of the great grape varieties are grown; Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling and Sauvignon as well as Pinotage and Pinot Noir - over 90% of new plantings are of classic grape varieties. The Wine Institute of New Zealand, founded in 1975, has been effective in controlling policies and undertaking forward planning.

Hand in hand with the expansion of the industry has been the development of the South Island. Whereas the first wine-growing districts had all been in the North Island, Blenheim - at the northern tip of South Island - began to be developed in the 1970's. It consistently tops the sunshine records and has a climate similar to parts of Burgundy and Bordeaux.

I wouldn't be the first to observe that of all the varieties planted, the one that seems to have found its natural home is the Sauvignon Blanc. In Europe it's a grape that needs careful handling, it's not unknown for it to produce a bouquet reminiscent of cats' pee - an aroma that ranks low on my list of likes. I've yet to find this particular bouquet from a New Zealand Sauvignon, and not only that, the wines seem fatter and fuller in body.

Given the innovative nature of the industry, it comes as no surprise that a group of New Zealand producers are at the forefront of launching the screw-cap bottle for good wines onto the market.

Wine of the Week

Lawson's Dry Hills Sauvignon Blanc 2001.

From Marlborough in the South Island, this wine is a good example of the elegant wines produced from the Sauvignon grape in New Zealand. Fresh and fruity with body and length, it now comes in a screw-cap bottle as well as cork.

Available : Berry Brothers & Rudd, McCabe's, O'Brien's, Redmond & Sons, On the Grapevine, Devine Wine Shop. RRP £12.95