Winemaker Kevin Judd once received a letter of complaint: “How dare you put sauvignon blanc in oak! If I wanted that, I’d go and buy an Aussie chardonnay.” Today, Judd’s signature wine – Greywacke Wild Sauvignon – is a leading example of sauvignon blanc from far outside the mainstream, fermented with indigenous (‘wild’) rather than cultured yeasts, and handled in old French oak barriques rather than stainless steel tanks.
Born in England, Judd grew up in Australia and studied winemaking in Adelaide. Moving to New Zealand in 1983, he worked for Selaks in Auckland, then shifted to Marlborough, where he built an international reputation by overseeing the first 25 vintages at Cloudy Bay. Today, Judd and wife Kimberley run Greywacke Vineyards, but their background is obviously invaluable – 16 years after Greywacke’s first vintage in 2009, an Auckland wine retailer is still promoting their latest pinot noir as “from ex-Cloudy Bay people …”
Greywacke Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2024
★★★★½
Grown at sites in the Southern Valleys and central Wairau Valley, this wine was handled principally in stainless steel tanks. It is weighty and sweet-fruited, with strong, ripe tropical fruit flavours to the fore (don’t expect any strong grassy characters). Finely textured, it has lively acidity and a dry, lingering finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $24-$29
Greywacke Marlborough Wild Sauvignon 2022
★★★★★
This oak-aged wine is full-bodied, ripe and rounded, with concentrated tropical fruit flavours, complex, savoury and finely textured. A distinctive, dry, very harmonious wine, it’s a drink-now or cellaring proposition. (13.5% alc/vol) $35-$40
Greywacke Marlborough Chardonnay 2022
★★★★★
This hand-picked wine is fermented and matured in French oak barriques (about 20% new). Bright, light yellow/green, it is full-bodied and fleshy, with strong, ripe stonefruit flavours and mealy, biscuity, savoury notes adding impressive complexity. A generous, well-rounded, harmonious wine, it’s already drinking well, but ageworthy, too. (14% alc/vol) $38-$47
Greywacke Marlborough Pinot Noir 2022
★★★★½
This graceful, smooth-flowing red was hand-picked on hillsides in the Southern Valleys and matured in French oak barriques. Ruby hued, it is mouthfilling, savoury and complex, with deep, ripe cherry, plum, spice and nut flavours, and very supple tannins. A strongly varietal, very harmonious, finely textured wine, it should be at its best 2026+. (13% alc/vol) $43-$52
Wine of the week: Greywacke Marlborough Riesling 2023
★★★★★
Invitingly scented, this single-vineyard wine was handled in tanks and seasoned French oak barriques. A full-bodied style of riesling, it is fresh and vigorous, with rich peach, lemon and apple flavours, gentle sweetness and appetising acidity. Already delicious, it’s a finely crafted wine, for drinking now or cellaring. (12% alc/vol) $29-$33
