Seventeen judges are about to immerse themselves in Marlborough wine as the Marlborough Wine Show sponsored by QuayConnect kicks off this week.

Those judges will be kept busy with entries in most categories well above previous years. Chief Judge Ben Glover says wineries are well aware of the importance of shows, particularly regional ones such as Marlborough.

Congratulations to Alun Kilby from Marisco, who came became the 2022 Tonnellerie de Mercurey Marlborough Young Winemaker of the Year. The competition was held on 21st September at MRC and the winners were announced at the Awards Dinner the same evening.

Wine Enthusiast’s 23rd Annual Wine Star Award nominees have been announced, honouring individuals and companies that make outstanding contributions to the wine and alcohol beverage world. We are pleased to let you know Marlborough has once again been nominated for Wine Region of the Year.

In the lead up to the local government elections, Winepress reports a Q&A with Marlborough’s 2022 Mayoral Candidates and checks in with candidates in the Wairau Awatere ward.

Congratulations to Tahryn Mason from Villa Maria in Marlborough, who became the 2022 Corteva Young Viticulturist of the Year. The National Final was held on 30 August at Indevin’s Bankhouse in Marlborough with the announcement made at the Awards Dinner the following evening.

The Marlborough community is justifiably outraged by recent media stories relating to some RSE employees in our community. A Labour Inspectorate investigation is underway, and we await the results. If any of the recent allegations are upheld, we should all be concerned.

It is critical to everyone that the RSE scheme ensures the win-wins it was set up to achieve are strengthened for the workers, businesses and communities involved. We fully support the move to push ahead with a review of the RSE scheme.

The Young Winemaker competition aims to help ambitious and passionate young people become future leaders of the NZ wine industry. It is a fantastic opportunity for emerging young winemakers to grow, develop and advance their careers. We are pleased to introduce you to the young Marlborough contestants competing in the Marlborough competition 21st August 2022.

Congratulations to Tahryn Mason from Villa Maria who became the 2022 Marlborough Corteva Young Viticulturist of the Year on 7 July at the competition held at Giesen House in Rapaura. He will now go through to the National Final which will also be held in Marlborough at the end of August.

Produced by Whitehaven Wines, the Kōparepare wine range has been created to support the protection and restoration of New Zealand’s marine environment. All sales of Kōparepare benefit the work of LegaSea, a non-profit organisation dedicated to restoring the abundance, biodiversity and health of New Zealand’s marine environment.

When Dominic Pecchenino arrived at Matador Estate in 1993, Marlborough winegrowers were plagued by phylloxera and sceptical of plant science. Three decades on, the viticulturist has been recognised for his tireless work - using innovation, research and collegiality, to improve the way we grow wine.

The Corteva Young Viticulturist of the Year competition celebrates the future of viticulture. We are pleased to introduce you to the young Marlborough contestants competing in the Marlborough competition 7th July 2022.

A stalwart of the Marlborough wine industry, Dominic Pecchenino, has been honoured by the board of Wine Marlborough with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

The award, which recognises service to the development of the Marlborough Wine industry, was presented to the viticultural consultant during the Winter Pruning Field Day held at Matador Estate today [Wednesday, 25 May].

When it comes to the Marlborough wine scene, Pinot Gris is a relatively new kid on the block. But it hasn’t taken long for it to make its mark in the region.

On May 17, we’ll be celebrating International Pinot Gris Day and Marlborough’s second-most produced white wine, following Sauvignon Blanc.

Marlborough’s 2022 vintage was “edge-of-your-seat” stuff, with higher yields, inclement weather and the impact of Covid infections on crews, says Sophie Parker-Thomson, MW.

And it required a change in mindset from industry, following three consecutive drought years and light crops last year. “There has been a temptation to replenish the very empty pipelines with the bountiful yields - principally Sauvignon Blanc,” says Sophie, who owns and runs Blank Canvas Wines with her husband Matt Thomson.

Marlborough: Its long days of sunshine, crisp mornings, towering mountain ranges, meandering riverbeds and the sunken valleys of the Marlborough Sounds, glistening with crisp, emerald green waters.

If Marlborough came in a flavour there’s no doubt it would be Sauvignon Blanc, the wine that put the region on the map more than 30 years ago.

When covid-19 put an end to international wine tours for Wellington man Trevor Garrett, Marlborough moved to the top of the hit list.

Previously spending weeks walking and biking around some of the world’s oldest wine regions, including Burgundy and Chablis in France, Trevor opted to do Marlborough by bike.

For Sauvignon Blanc lovers, the thought of putting their aromatic, fruity and uniquely Marlborough drop in oak can be intriguing and tantalising.

Pioneering Marlborough winemaker Kevin Judd has been using different styles with Sauvignon Blanc for years – fermenting it in oak barrels and using wild yeasts. Doing so provides a significant savouriness and a totally different mouthfeel from the classic crisp and clean Marlborough Sauvignon.

Méthode Marlborough executive board and technical sub-committee member Andrew Parley says the annual celebration is a chance to celebrate Marlborough’s sparkling wine harvest.

“We start the Marlborough harvest with the first grapes coming in for our traditional method wines, so it’s a time to celebrate the new vintage kicking off,” he says.

Sixteen years ago, Damien Yvon moved to Marlborough from his homeland of France for a three year stint working at Clos Henri. Needless to say, he never left.

For all but one of those 16 years, prior to the covid-19 pandemic, the company’s founders, the Bourgeois family of France, have joined him at work during harvest.

As one of the pioneers of wine in Marlborough, Saint Clair Family Estate has built a large array of traditions over the years, not least of all during harvest.

Acknowledging the help they receive from people across all corners of the globe to get fruit into bottles, the team at Saint Clair places huge emphasis on making those people feel as welcome and at home as they can.