Mount Riley Wines continues success at Marlborough Wine Show with two new trophies

Mount Riley Wines continues success at Marlborough Wine Show with two new trophies

Image: Mount Riley

Mount Riley Wines have added to their collection of Marlborough Wine Show trophies, picking up two at the 2024 show, sponsored by QuayConnect.

For the second year running, the team was awarded the Wine Brokers New Zealand Champion Gewürztraminer, this year with the 2024 vintage of their Mount Riley Marlborough Gewürztraminer, following the same success by the 2023 vintage last year.

The team was also awarded the Chandler Glass & Packaging Alternate Style Sauvignon Blanc with their Mount Riley 17 Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023.

Chief Winemaker Matt Murphy said it was validating to have received the Gewürztraminer trophy two years in a row, and he was proud to have made an impression with their alternative style Sauvignon Blanc, made in an effort to push the boundaries of the wine our region is so well known for.

He shares a little more insight below…

Mount Riley picked up two trophies this year, building on your success last year. What is it about the MWS that makes it an important event on your calendar and how does it feel to consistently do so well at the show?

We’re obviously hugely proud as a team whenever the wines do well. We’re a Marlborough centric producer so the show is a great chance to benchmark ourselves against our peers from this fantastic region. To do well on the back of some really strong recent vintages is also really pleasing, knowing that collectively, the competition is pretty high.

Sauvignon Blanc was the variety to beat this year. Can you tell us a bit about the 17 Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023? What makes it stand out and what makes it ‘alternative’?

We were stoked with the alternative Sauvignon Blanc trophy. It’s not an easy style to nail – for us it’s about creating a wine which has complexity over and above just complexity of fruit, is age-worthy, but is also unmistakably Sauvignon Blanc. Site selection is hugely important, as is canopy management and fruit exposure during the growing season. We source the fruit from an older vine site in the Southern Valleys. That and the detail in the winery around treatment of juice, wild fermentation and selection of large format oak as our choice of fermentation vessel.

What was the driver in creating this more experimental sauvignon blanc? Why is it important for the region to keep innovating and experimenting?

I’d suggest most of us here in Marlborough consider ourselves Sauvignon specialists though it’s really important we continue to build on our global reputation as the world's foremost producers of Sauvignon Blanc. Our 17 Valley wine gives us the opportunity to express the variety in a way which is quite distinct from the classic Marlborough style. We’ll always be revered as a region which produces wines with hugely distinctive primary fruit flavours, but it’s great for the world to see the variety expressed in multiple styles which really showcase its versatility and pedigree. 

Your Marlborough Gewürztraminer 2024 has taken the top Gewürztraminer two years in a row - what makes it so special, and how does it feel to have achieved that consistency of quality? Were there any contributing factors in terms of vintage conditions in achieving such a good result?

The fruit comes from one of our sites on Brookby Road. It’s an amazing vineyard, my favourite in our portfolio, and has this small area of old vine Gewürtz. It’s no secret it’s not the easiest variety to sell but between the loyal following for this particular wine and the sensational flavours the vineyard generates, I just can’t bring myself to remove the vines. We all know the ‘24 vintage was stunning, so it was really pleasing to build on the success of the ‘23 vintage wine and reaffirm we’re on point with our winegrowing.

About the sponsors.

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

Wine Brokers New Zealand (Champion Gewürztraminer trophy)
Wine Brokers New Zealand is a bottled and bulk wine export and brokering company based here in Marlborough. They offer full winemaking services and pride themselves on their strong and direct relationships with winemakers and grape growers in the region and throughout New Zealand.

Chandler Glass & Packaging (Alternate Style Sauvignon Blanc trophy)

Chandler Glass & Packaging coordinates the production and supply of over 105 million wine bottles per annum for New Zealand, Australian and United States Wineries. Their team of quality control coordinators operate 24 hours, seven days a week to ensure a quality product and service. From the company’s outset, their principal aim has been to provide the wine and beverage industries with choice, innovation, quality and healthy competition.