Sauvignon blanc now makes up more than 70% of all wine produced in New Zealand. But is it still the best in the world?
New Zealand sauvignon exploded on to the world’s wine scene in the excessive 80s in a riot of flamboyant herbs, neon lime and vivid passionfruit. No
one had tasted anything quite like it, with this style from Marlborough literally going on to launch the country’s modern wine industry. Fast forward four decades and things have become more complex and subtle, both in perceptions of our flagship variety and the examples the country is capable of making.
Sauvignon blanc holds pole position as a variety in New Zealand in a way not seen in any other winemaking nation. It’s the country’s most widely planted variety, of which three-quarters is grown in Marlborough. It currently accounts for more than 70% of the wine made in the country and 85% of all New Zealand wine exported. While New Zealand’s wine exports have been sluggish, sauvignon has remained more stable than varieties such as pinot noir.
Sauvignon’s success story has received international endorsement through investment from names synonymous with quality: for example, Edmond de Rothschild – best known for its Bordeaux Chateaux – which bought a Marlborough vineyard in 2012.
“That investment was based on a strong attraction for the New Zealand sauvignon blanc they were tasting,” notes Anne Escalle, who heads up its New Zealand operation. “The fact that Edmond de Rothschild Heritage, a company with French vineyards, invested in a NZ sauvignon blanc vineyard, says a lot about the worldwide potential they see in our region.”
Sophie Parker-Thomson, master of wine and co-proprietor of Blank Canvas Wines, says consumers want authenticity.
Quality concerns
There are signs, however, that sauvignon might be starting to lose some of its shine. A focus on a single highly aromatic and fruity style has led to criticisms that this has stifled diversity and experimentation in Marlborough sauvignon, resulting in predictable and formulaic examples. These are not the wines that I reach for.
Winemakers report that New Zealand sauvignon blanc is no longer such an easy sell. However, if there is sauvignon fatigue, this appears to be with “generic” sauvignon blanc.
“Consumers are increasingly discerning; they want authenticity and provenance, not anonymous, monotonous white wine,” says master of wine and co-proprietor of Blank Canvas Wines Sophie Parker-Thomson.
It’s currently a tale of two sauvignons.
“From my vantage point, the quality has never been higher, but paradoxically, it has also never been lower,” Parker-Thomson notes.
“At the top end, we’re seeing some of the most precise, site-driven, texturally sophisticated sauvignon blanc ever made in New Zealand. Yet at the same time, the growth of bulk shipping, foreign bottling, and volume-first models has widened the gap between the best and the most commoditised expressions.”
She, with a growing number of quality-focused Marlborough producers, considers this divergence a major threat to Marlborough sauvignon’s reputation, as less authentic wines trade on their name.
This spurred the establishment of Appellation Marlborough Wine (AMW) in 2018, which now boasts 50 members. The AMW Trust Mark guarantees a wine contains 100% Marlborough-grown sustainably certified grapes, was bottled in New Zealand, and has passed an independent quality tasting.
This is especially pertinent for sauvignon at present, after a bumper crop in 2025, combined with a declining global wine market and economic pressures. It was a comparable situation in 2008 and 2009, where New Zealand narrowly missed being tarnished by a “sauvalanche” of unexciting bulk sauvignon hitting the likes of Britain’s supermarket shelves.
Dr Jo Burzynska. Photo / Babiche Martens
Growing diversity
Now for the flipside. I agree that New Zealand sauvignons are scaling new heights in quality and diversity. One of the most exciting movements in Marlborough has been the exploration of its subregions, which see the region offering more than the powerfully pungent styles of its original Central Wairau heartland. You can check these out on the new interactive vineyard map created by the Marlborough Map Collective to highlight the diverse profiles of the subregions.
“The subregions within Marlborough have a profound effect on the style of the wine, and we find many wine drinkers will absolutely have a favourite region to suit their palate,” says Astrolabe’s Simon Waghorn, a passionate subregional advocate and sauvignon pioneer in the southern Kēkerengū Coast.
“Sourcing fruit from diverse regions of Marlborough is also important to our Marlborough blend, as it brings complexity and interest to the style, with each region contributing a different layer: from the lighter, more linear, salty wines coming from the limestone soils of the Southern Coast; the fresh, savoury, green-spectrum fruit flavours of the Awatere valley; to the richer more tropical fruit of the Wairau.”
Ed Donaldson of Pegasus Bay wines.
Alternative takes
It’s not just Marlborough that’s making excellent sauvignon. More restrained examples are evident in Nelson; taut and linear expressions hail from Central Otago, and there are some great textural examples from North Canterbury.
“The Waipara Valley has the potential to make very complex styles of sauvignon blanc given our comparatively low crop levels, and long hang time that allows for plenty of flavour development,” Ed Donaldson of Pegasus Bay notes of North Canterbury’s promise. Pegasus Bay, which recently added a stand-alone sauvignon to its wines, has been experimenting with techniques such as whole-bunch fermentation, which imparts different flavours, and longer time spent on skins for texture.
Techniques such as these, which are not part of the traditional Marlborough recipe, are now being more widely explored. Coupled with a finer focus on individual sauvignon sites, the result is more distinctive expressions and alternative styles that are expanding the spectrum of our sauvignons. This new wave of sauvignon is exemplified by relative newcomers such as A Thousand Gods.
Lauren Keenan and Simon Sharpe of A Thousand Gods winery.
Lauren Keenan and Simon Sharpe of A Thousand Gods are making some of the most compelling new-wave examples. Their focus is on making wines from the biodynamic Churton vineyard with no additions, resulting in riper, less greenly pungent profiles. They craft two distinct sauvignon blancs: the taut and linear “Blanc”, made with minimal time on its skins and aged in old oak, and the softer, more exotically fruited “Giara”, fermented and then aged for a long period on skin in porous clay amphorae.
“The two wines are made from the same grape and the same vineyard block but are very different wines,” says Sharpe, “which illustrates to what extent winemaking choices can influence wine style.”
Kat Jankowiec is another fresh voice in Marlborough sauvignon blanc.
German-born Kat Jankowiec, with her Katalyst brand, is another fresh voice in Marlborough sauvignon blanc, aiming to challenge perceptions and demonstrate the variety’s untapped potential. She deliberately chose sauvignon blanc for her first release (now sold out), not to compete with the region’s exuberant, aromatic styles, but to ask, “What else can it be?
“As the region has matured, so has the conversation,” Jankowiec explains. “The exploration of single sites, soils, and microclimates marked an important step in Marlborough’s journey, helping us understand how sauvignon responds to place.
“Alongside that came a gradual emergence of alternative expressions, wines that leaned less on aromatic exuberance and immediacy, and more on nuance, structure, and longevity. This is where Katalyst fits.”
Ageability is adding a further dimension to New Zealand sauvignon blanc. At a recent tasting highlighting the evolution of the variety, I tried an impressive lineup of examples from 2015, which tasted incredibly fresh, rich and complex; and these were not all examples that had been fermented and aged in oak, as one might expect. Wineries such as Astrolabe are increasingly showcasing these older bottles.
“We have started to release library wines for the first time in our cellar door, going back to 2008,” says Astrolabe’s Arabella Waghorn, “and these have been very popular, with many drinkers preferring the complexity and roundness that comes with bottle age.”
But is it still the best in the world?
When commissioned to write this update on our most important grape, I was asked by my editor to investigate whether New Zealand sauvignon blanc is still the best in the world. I keep abreast with elegant flinty examples from the Loire, and richer blends from Bordeaux, as well as the cooler climate expressions from Chile and South Africa, and am convinced that our best remain up there with top examples from around the globe.
Don’t just take my word for it. UK-based masters of wine Peter Richards and Susie Barrie have just announced their New Zealand Wines of the Year 2026. I caught up with Richards who, from the other side of the world, enthused about New Zealand sauvignon’s recognisability, diversity, quality and value for money.
UK-based masters of wine Susie Barrie and Peter Richards. Photo / Husk
“So yes, absolutely, unquestionably, definitely New Zealand sauvignon blanc is the best in the world,” Richards asserts.
“It continues to set the standards and expectations with this protean grape variety that we’re only just starting to get to know.
“Ignore the naysayers and sniping critics. This is a rare wine category that offers visceral joy, as well as intellectual satisfaction. Anyone missing out … is missing out. Just sit back and enjoy the Kiwi savvy ride.”
New Zealand sauvignon blanc recommendations
If you’ve been suffering from sauvignon blanc fatigue, I vouch that at least one of this varied bunch will invigorate your appetite for the variety once more.
New Zealand sauvignon blanc recommendations from Dr Jo Burzynska.
Alternative expression: A Thousand Gods Giara Waihopai Marlborough 2024
A Thousand Gods coax something incredibly distinctive from sauvignon in this organic, zero-additive subregional single vineyard expression. There’s both intensity and restraint in this amphora-fermented wine. It’s richly textured with ripe and fresh greengage fruit and an edge of lemon bitters, hints of chamomile florals, anise, mineral salts and a touch of spice.
Oak influenced: Edmond de Rothschild Rimapere Plot 101 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
If you were less enthused by New Zealand’s early fume styles, it’s worth trying the contemporary wave of oaked sauvignons. This impressive example was fermented part in French oak, part in-tank, harnessing wild yeasts and spending almost a year ageing on its yeast lees before bottling. The result is a powerful style where oak adds texture rather than flavour to its palate, reminiscent of white Bordeaux, with its wild herbs and flowers, smoke and flint, attractive savoury dimension and punchy limey acid line.
$45 from Glengarry, Liquorlegends.co.nz (North Shore & East Tamaki); and selected Liquorland stores
Subregional diversity: Yealands S1 Single Block Awatere Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2025
Marlborough’s Southern Awatere Valley has a dry, windy climate that makes for more austere styles of sauvignon. This elegant example from a single block is subtly perfumed with wafts of white florals and green herbs, mandarin fruit, notes of oyster shell and a briny minerality from this coastal site.
New Zealand sauvignon blanc recommendations from Dr Jo Burzynska.
Beyond Marlborough: Pegasus Bay Whole Bunch Ferment Waipara Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2024
Made from 35-year-old vines planted at a site on Waipara’s Glasnevin Gravels, with some of the coolest nights in the region for freshness and flavour. With a fruit spectrum that ranges from green apple to tropical and grassy notes, its weight and concentration are lifted by its bright acid mineral line. Proof that great sauvignon doesn’t have to hail from Marlborough.
$28 from stockists that include Pegasusbay.com, Vino Fino, Caro’s and Liquorland
Classic style – Rohe by Rapaura Springs Rapaura Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2025
From the birthplace of some of Marlborough’s earliest sauvignon blanc, associated with the region’s quintessential punchy Marlborough style, this is classic Central Wairau sauvignon done well. Made with grapes specifically from the Rapaura “microregion”, the Rohe is bursting with pungent nettle and green capsicum aromas, over-concentrated and mouth-filling gooseberry and guava fruit, zesty lime and a saline minerality.
$24.99 from Vino Fino, Liquorland, Moore Wilsons
Single site – Folium Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
While most Marlborough sauvignon is irrigated, this is a rare dry-grown example, which encourages vines to interact more closely with its soil and climate for the fullest expression of its vineyard site. From Viva’s 2025 sauvignon blanc producer of the year, it’s a restrained and textural organic expression that hails from the Brancott Southern Valleys subregion. Its pure green plum and bright lemon fruit is infused with hints of lemon balm, fennel and stone.
$32.99 from Point Chev Organic Wines, Fine O Wine Milford, Regional Wines and Spirits, Winesofnz.com
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