Brent Marris at the Decanter World Wine Awards - Source: ONE News

NZ wine takes top award in London

By Garth Bray in London

Published: 12:46PM Thursday September 06, 2012

 

Winemaker Brent Marris is grinning wide enough to give himself an earache, after winning one of Europe's top wine awards today. The Ned 2011 Sauvignon Blanc, produced by Marisco Vineyards, has just taken the Decanter World Wine Awards international trophy for best Sauvignon under a tenner in the UK market.

 

The awards were presented at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

Even though half of the roughly 500 entries came from New Zealand wineries, Marris' wine has still come out on top.

 

"Because it's up against some of the best of the world and also up against other kiwi Sauvignon Blancs, to actually come through and win it is massive, it's huge," says Marris, holding his huge trophy diploma.

Marris' single-block experiment in the Waihopai Valley is reaping rewards.

His strategy has been to create the feel of a 20 acre boutique vineyard, but on a global scale.

 

With 600 acres of vines planted on three terraces, Marris has the potential to produce hundreds of thousands of bottles a year, with a third of it going into the UK market.

 

In the UK, he says Marisco's is the biggest single supplier to one of the better known wine merchants, Majestic. "It's small on a big scale," says the man who built Wither Hills and sold it to Lion Nathan, pouring much of the profit into creating Marisco.

 

 

Marris has found his success through fusing the Old World approach of a single lot press, while also using some technology and processes looted from the dairy and meat industry to create a 21st century winery that has clearly turned heads here in London.

It is the sole New Zealand winner in a night dominated by wines from France and Chile. However, all of the winners were overwhelmingly from family owned wineries like Marisco - there's something of a taste here for the smaller scale, picky producers.

Yet Marris thinks he has the jump on them because the wine is produced on a large scale on that single lot and already has a spot on shelves in the US and UK.

"We've hit the refresh button on sav blanc," says Marris.

Marris may be bold, loud, and perhaps a little immodest, but he is now backed up by a major award. A bit like his 2011 The Ned.

 

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