Champion Wine of the Show

Saint Clair Family Estate Wairau Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2021 named Quay Connect Champion Wine of the Show at the Marlborough Wine Show 2021

The team at Saint Clair Family Estate was ‘overwhelmed’ to have their Wairau Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2021 named the Marlborough Wine Show 2021 Champion of the Show.

Alongside taking out the QuayConnect Champion Wine of the Show trophy, the wine was awarded the WineWorks Champion Sauvignon Blanc - Current Vintage award.

Their Pioneer Block 15 Strip Block Pinot Noir 2021 was also recognised, picking up the Classic Oak Products Champion Pinot Noir - Current Vintage title.

Saint Clair Family Estate Director and Marketing Manager Julie Ibbotson says the accolades, particularly the top trophy, are a huge achievement for the family-owned company.

“We were overwhelmed to hear that we had won the trophies for best Pinot Noir and best Sauvignon Blanc. The only thing better than that for us is the Best Wine of the Show! 

“It is a very rare occurrence to get your hands on the wine of the show trophy and to get it with our flagship wine, Sauvignon Blanc, is of particular significance to us,” she says.

The Wairau Reserve Sauvignon Blanc is the top Sauvignon Blanc produced by Saint Clair, usually made from a single vineyard but in some instances, a combination of two.

This vintage came froma combination of vineyards from John Blackmore and Jason and Jenny Neil, growers in the Dillons Point subregion; considered by the company to be the best place in Marlborough to grow Sauvignon Blanc.

Saint Clair Family Estate utilises a unique quality assessment system in which each vineyard batch is blind tasted separately by a tasting panel and scored.

Winemaker Stewart Maclennan says the goal of the winemaking team is to produce the very best wine that they can.

“We are provided with exceptional fruit from all over the Marlborough district and we work hard to reflect the quality of this fruit in the bottle. The Saint Clair Wairau Reserve Sauvignon Blanc is the very best of the best. With minimal winemaking intervention we preserve those flavours from the vineyard,” he says.

“We are incredibly proud of the 2021 vintage Sauvignon Blanc wines that we have produced. To obtain the highly contested Wine of the Show Trophy reflects a team effort focused on quality, and provides us with a great sense of achievement knowing that our hard work and dedication is recognised.”

Champion Wine Award Sponsor QuayConnect General Manager Jaron McLeod says the company is proud to have been a key supporter of the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show. 

“This sponsorship acknowledges our origins which started with a focus on sustainable logistics solutions for the Marlborough wine industry,” he says.

“Whilst COVID has changed the format of the celebration, we are delighted that the judging was able to occur and acknowledge the high-quality wine from the region. I am delighted to have awarded Saint Clair as the winner of the QuayConnect Champion Wine of the Show Award and congratulate them on their achievement.” 

WineWorks Marlborough General Manager Damien Gillman says sponsoring the Champion Sauvignon Blanc, current vintage, award was fitting for the company.

“WineWorks loves sponsoring the Sauvignon Blanc category wines in the Marlborough Wine show as it is 80%+ of what we package and process for our clients each year,” he says. 

“Supporting both the alternate style and current vintage is an acknowledgement of the innovation and experience that goes into creating both category wine types. We’re proud to sponsor our local wine show as part of our commitment to the NZ wine industry.”