The producers of the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show’s winning wine had another hit in the competition this year, taking home the title of Champion 2020 Pinot Noir.

Saint Clair Family Estate picked up the trophy, officially known as the Classic Oak Products Champion Pinot Noir, current vintage trophy, for their Pioneer Block 15 Strip Block Pinot Noir 2020.

The winning Gewürztraminer at the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show is a special wine, made using a mix of the maker’s original grapes, along with some grown by friends of the winery.

The Lawson’s Dry Hills Gewürztraminer 2019 was named the Wine Brokers New Zealand Champion Gewürztraminer, and Winemaker Marcus Wright says the drop is a special one for the company.

The Coterie Wine of Provenance at the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show was made using fruit from a ‘truly magical’ vineyard in the Awatere Valley.

Awarded to the Brancott Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2021, Winemaker Laura-Kate Morgan says she and her team were humbled to receive the trophy.

The Champion Pinot Noir from a previous vintage at the Marlborough Wine Show was born out of a desire to create outstanding Pinot Noir.

Marisco Vineyards Red Wine Programme Lead Winemaker, Seb Bouchut, says he and his team were thrilled to receive the award, officially known as the Classic Oak Products Champion Pinot Noir, 2019 & older, for The King's Wrath Pinot Noir 2019.

The team at Stoneleigh Wines was ‘honoured’ to have their Latitude Pinot Gris 2021 named the Label & Litho Champion Pinot Gris of this year’s Marlborough Wine Show.

Stoneleigh Assistant Winemaker Maddy Isaacs says the award is testament to the focus and commitment their team put into craft and quality from vineyard to bottle to make a wine they are particularly proud of.

Isabel Estate has once again cemented its reputation as a premium producer of Chardonnay, after winning the MRC Champion Chardonnay - current vintage trophy at the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show.

The trophy was awarded to the Isabel Estate Marlborough Wild Barrique Chardonnay 2020, which is in its fifth vintage.

The team at Wairau River Wines was thrilled to receive three awards at the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show, their Summer Riesling kicking off the trifecta.

Picking up the De Sangosse Champion Riesling of the Show, the Wairau River Estate Summer Riesling 2021 is a single vineyard wine, grown right outside their winery.

Catalina Sounds has taken the trophy for Champion Alternate Sauvignon Blanc with their single vineyard Sound of White ‘Barrel Fermented’ Sauvignon Blanc 2019 at the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show.

In its inaugural year, the WineWorks Alternate Sauvignon Blanc class was introduced to the show as a way of recognising alternate styles of Marlborough’s flagship variety.

The Marlborough Museum was thrilled to present Framingham Wines with the Legacy Award at the 2021 Marlborough Wine Show, sponsored by QuayConnect.

The Marlborough Museum Legacy Award honours wines with pedigree and is awarded to the wine producer with the highest scores from three vintages within a ten-year period.

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.

Peter Russell retained his title at the 2021 Tonnellerie de Mercurey Marlborough Young Winemaker of the Year competition, taking top spot for the second year running. But the Matua winemaker says there was seriously tough competition, with the calibre of contestants climbing as the event matures. “It gets pretty intense,” he says, thankful that he had plenty of past experience to remind him to “take a breath” and take stock of each question.

The outstanding quality of the 2021 vintage saw judges at this year’s Marlborough Wine Show, sponsored by Quay Connect, award the highest ever number of gold medals. In total 53 gold’s were awarded to Marlborough wines, with 2021 Sauvignon Blancs picking up a total of 12.

Chief Judge Ben Glover described the Sauvignons from this vintage as “out of this world”.

Two new awards celebrating the Best Organic Wine and Alternate Style Sauvignon Blanc, coupled with two exceptional Marlborough vintages, promise for an exciting lineup on the judging table at this year’s Marlborough Wine Show, sponsored by QuayConnect.

Three days of judging 544 wines begins tomorrow (13 October) at the Marlborough Convention Centre under strict Covid-19 alert level 2 guidelines.

Jess Wilson reckons she has the best job in the world. The 29-year-old Whitehaven viticulturalist loves the variety her role involves, satisfying both her love of horticulture and science, enjoyment of dealing with people and a good balance of indoor and outdoor work. 

Last month Jess took the title of Corteva Marlborough Young Viticulturist of the Year, following a competition that saw her tested on everything from trellising and irrigation to her interview and speech skills. 

In the past five years Marlborough’s vineyard planted area has increased by 24 percent, to nearly 29,000 hectares, with even more growth expected in the next four years.

The Marlborough Wine Industry Growth Forecast is based on a survey of a mix of wineries, growers and industry contractors undertaken at the end of 2020. It shows that in just four years just over 5,500 hectares more vines have been planted in the region.

Marlborough’s 2021 vintage story is one of low crops and “exceptional” wines, according to Forrest Estate General Manager Beth Forrest. “For me it was the year for Sauvignon Blanc,” says the winemaker, describing the complexity of Marlborough’s flagship variety. “They were overly aromatic and beautiful, with multi-layered flavour levels as well.

Plant & Food Research weather expert Rob Agnew says lower yields were due to a variety of factors, including inclement flowering conditions, with Marlborough temperatures mostly lower than average from mid-November to the first week of December last year.

Close to one fifth of all economic activity in Marlborough is generated from the wine industry, according to a report released today.

The report by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) was commissioned by Wine Marlborough Ltd and highlights the role the wine industry plays in the continued economic growth of Marlborough.

When Neal and Judy Ibbotson bought a bare block of land on the outskirts of Blenheim, it was meant as a stepping stone to something bigger. Instead it was the “right place at the right time”, say the founders of Saint Clair Family Estate, 42 years after planting their first vines.

In the mid 1980s, the world’s eyes and palates were drawn to a maritime province at the edge of the Pacific Ocean, thanks to startling Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough’s Wairau Plains.

Thirty-five years on, those lean and stony river flats are covered in verdant wines, producing fresh, lively and aromatic Sauvignon Blanc. But they are increasingly rivalled by neighbouring subregions, including the Southern Valleys and Awatere Valley, each bringing a unique flavour profile to the ongoing story of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

Marlborough wine companies are counting their luck, after harvesting the 2020 vintage amidst a national lockdown. But the vintage will be remembered for more than winery bubbles and Covid-19 precautions, with a benign season delivering excellent fruit.

“If you didn’t panic; if you weighed up your options and proceeded calmly, then you could make the most of an extremely good harvest - one of the best we’ve had,” says Dog Point viticulturist Nigel Sowman.