Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All Vintages
One of Marlborough’s pioneering winemakers, Kevin Judd’s appreciable career is intrinsically linked with the global path of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Kevin’s personal venture, Greywacke (pronounced “grey-wacky”), was unveiled in 2009, fulfilling a long-held dream for himself and wife Kimberley.
Named after New Zealand’s prolific bedrock, Greywacke was originally adopted as the name of the Judds’ first vineyard in Rapaura, whose soils had an abundance of these river stones. Now living in the Omaka Valley overlooking Marlborough’s striking patchwork of vines, Kevin sources fruit from mature vineyards in the central Wairau Plains and the Southern Valleys.
Alongside winemaking, Kevin’s talent for photography has seen his evocative images appear in countless publications worldwide, and inevitably, take pride of place on the labels of his solo winemaking venture –– the synthesis of his dual passions.
An icon and leading region of New Zealand's distinctive style of Sauvignon blanc, Marlborough has a unique terroir, making it ideal for high quality grape production (of many varieties). Despite some common generalizations, which could be fairly justified given that Marlborough is responsible for 90% of New Zealand's Sauvignon blanc production, the wines from this region are actually anything but homogenous. At the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, the vineyards of Marlborough benefit from well-draining, stony soils, a dry, sunny climate and wide temperature fluctuations between day and night, a phenomenon that supports a perfect balance between berry ripeness and acidity.
The region’s king variety, Sauvignon blanc, is beloved for its pungent, aromatic character with notes of exotic tropical fruit, freshly cut grass and green bell pepper along with a refreshing streak of stony minerality. These wines are made in a wide range of styles, and winemakers take advantage of various clones, vineyard sites, fermentation styles, lees-stirring and aging regimens to differentiate their bottlings, one from one another.
Also produced successfully here are fruit-forward Pinot noirs (especially where soils are clay-rich), elegant Riesling, Pinot gris and Gewürztraminer.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.