Greywacke

I met-up with legendary Marlborough winemaker and very talented photographer Kevin Judd in Central Otago this trip. Along with the new releases, he presented me with a vertical tasting of The “Wild Sauvignon Blanc” to demonstrate how it ages. Kevin Judd (who, I should probably point out, was one of the founders and the former winemaker at Cloudy Bay), was emphatically not looking to reinvent Cloudy Bay's Te Koko with this wine. And although it too is a barrel fermented style, this is where the similarities end.  In contrast to Te Koko, which is in some ways more about the winemaking, with this wine Judd told me he wanted to show more of the Sauvignon Blanc fruit, and and is ultimately looking to forge a fresher, more varietally expressive style. LISA PEROTTI-BROWN

Greywacke is the wine label of long-time Cloudy Bay winemaker Kevin Judd and is named after the rounded river-stones that are scattered through the soils of his vineyards. Sourcing his fruit from premium vineyards in the central Wairau plains and Southern valleys, Kevin produces a brilliant range of wines, primarily focusing on Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc, with a small amount of Pinot Gris, Riesling and Chardonnay. As you would expect from the founding winemaker of New Zealand’s most famous wine, the quality throughout the Greywacke range is exceptional. Not satisfied with being one of the country's most influential winemakers, Kevin is also one of the world’s premier wine and vineyard photographers. negociantsaustralia.com