Double win for Nautilus Wines at 2024 Marlborough Wine Show

It was a double win for Nautilus Estate at the 2024 Marlborough Show, sponsored by Quay Connect, with the team making an impression in both the Sparkling and ‘Other White’ Categories.

The Nautilus Cuvée Brut NV picked up the Winequip Champion Sparkling trophy, while the Nautilus Albariño 2024 picked up the title of Marlborough Wine & Food Experience Champion Other White Wine.

The company has been working hard at both varieties for many years, taking care to showcase the quality of grapes grown in Marlborough.

Winemaker and General Manager Clive Jones told us what makes these wines, and awards, special for Nautilus Estate…

Nautilus won two trophies at the 2024 MWS - can you tell us how it felt to pick up the top awards for both Sparkling and ‘Other White’ wines?

It is always fantastic to pick up a trophy at the Marlborough Wine Show and to get two was even better – it made for a memorable afternoon.

What makes your Cuvée Brut NV special, and what makes Marlborough a great place to produce this wine?

Nautilus Cuvée is a very special wine for us and it consistently gets recognised as one of New Zealand’s top sparklings. We have made this wine since 1991 and I would argue there has never been a bad year for sparkling – Marlborough is such a great place to grow sparkling grapes as we retain that critical acidity needed to give the wine structure. We made a distinctive Pinot Noir dominant blend and the Gane family in Selmes Road have supplied the major Pinot Noir component for that entire time – over 30 years now. Similarly, Jim and Debbie Greer on Rapaura Road have supplied the Chardonnay component for over 20 years now.

Do you think there’s a drive to work collaboratively in the Sparkling space in our region, particularly with initiatives like Methode Marlborough? Can you tell us a bit about the connection between local wine producers in this space?

This is a classic case of a group of producers with a common interest, in this case premium sparkling production, coming together to cooperate. The collaborative nature of the wine industry is special and we need more of this type of initiative. It can be hard to do everything by yourself and there is definitely strength in numbers for both getting the message out and learning the craft.

Tell us about your Albariño 2024.

2024 marks 10 years of Albariño production for us and we have been lucky enough to pick up this trophy three times before. Our Albariño has now won 11 gold medals and six trophies over 10 years, which is a track record we are very proud of. 2024 was a cracking vintage so we are chuffed to be able to continue our winning streak.

Albariño is a lesser known variety than the likes of our more famous Sauvignon Blanc. Is this a variety you produce each vintage? What makes Marlborough a good place to produce it, and does it allow you to get a bit more experimental in the winery?

Yes we now make this wine every year and I think the variety has a bright future – Albariño has become one of our top sellers at our cellar door so the variety resonates well with customers. Albariño does retain its acidity so that does require careful management in Marlborough as that is also a feature of our region. While we can make fantastic wine in small quantities, I don’t think it is scalable yet, but it is increasingly looking like a good bet against climate change. In the winery we keep it simple and just tank ferment to celebrate the beautiful aromatics we get in Marlborough – most of the work is done in the vineyard.

About the sponsors.

Both of these trophy sponsors are key players in the Marlborough wine industry. Get to know them a little better below.

Winequip (Champion Sparkling trophy)

Winequip is a key wine and beverage industry supplier in New Zealand and Australia, representing the world’s leading brands in beverage equipment and consumables. Their range showcases the latest advances in the wine and beverage industry to ensure businesses can access the highest quality, most reliable and technologically advanced equipment available. With their remarkable range of additives, they are able to provide solutions for all stages of the production process.