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    Marlborough

    New Zealand

    A sunny, dry plain of river silts and gravels, planted overwhelmingly to Sauvignon Blanc.

    30–50° N30–50° SequatorMarlborough
    Vineyard area
    30 469 ha (2025)1
    Country
    New Zealand
    Rocks in the profile
    topsoil, alluvium, gravel

    Scale

    In 2025 Marlborough had 30,469 producing hectares of vines, 72% of New Zealand's total.1 New Zealand Winegrowers lists 25,157 hectares of Sauvignon Blanc, followed by Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay.2 Marlborough was registered as a geographical indication on 26 February 2018.3

    Silt over gravel

    The Wairau Plains have young alluvial soils.4 In one Sauvignon blanc vineyard there, gravel came to the surface in places while elsewhere the silt soils were deep, so soil texture changed over quite short distances.4 The higher the proportion of gravelly soils, the more advanced the vines' phenology.4

    topsoilalluviumgravel
    Schematic profile based on the sources, not to scale.

    New Zealand Winegrowers describes the Wairau Valley soils as old riverbed and riverbank soils, and the Southern Valleys soils as heavier, with more clay.2 The region is one of New Zealand's sunniest and driest, and the Awatere Valley is cooler, drier and windier than the Wairau and Southern Valleys.2

    History

    In 1873 David Herd planted a small block of vines.5 On 11 August 1973 Montana planted the first of thousands of vines at Brancott.5

    Timeline

    1. 1873

      David Herd plants a small block of vines.5

    2. 1973

      On 11 August Montana plants the first of thousands of vines at Brancott.5

    3. 2018

      Marlborough is registered as a geographical indication on 26 February.3

    Grapes

    Soils

    Sources

    1. Vineyard Register Snapshots 2025 — New Zealand. New Zealand Winegrowers, 2025. level 2 · checked 2026-10-15
    2. Marlborough (regional fact sheet). New Zealand Winegrowers (nzwine.com). level 4 · checked 2026-10-15
    3. Marlborough — Geographical Indications Register (IP number 1004). Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ), 2018. level 1 · checked 2026-10-15
    4. The impact of differences in soil texture within a vineyard on vine vigour, vine earliness and juice composition (Trought, Dixon, Mills, Greven, Agnew, Mauk, Praat), J. Int. Sci. Vigne Vin 42(2):67-72. OENO One (Journal International des Sciences de la Vigne et du Vin), 2008. level 3 · checked 2026-10-15
    5. Marlborough's Wine History. Wine Marlborough (Marlborough Winegrowers' Association). level 4 · checked 2026-10-15