Great wine starts with the land. When you combine healthy soils with just the right amounts of sunshine, clean water and plenty of fresh air, beautiful grapes grow.

That’s why in New Zealand, our winegrowers tread lightly on the land, and work hard to look after what we have.

Sustainability isn’t just a fad for us, it’s at the heart of our wine industry. We’re committed to producing our world-famous wines in such a way that generations to come will benefit. Your bottle of New Zealand wine will always be made with the utmost respect for people and the planet.

Since the launch of our sustainability programme, nearly 30 years later, 96% of New Zealand’s vineyard area is certified sustainable under this programme – that’s 2,017 vineyards. Plus 10% of our wineries have organic certification, and some have achieved carbon neutral status.

When you select New Zealand wine, you can be sure that you and your customers can enjoy remarkable wine that’s been made with care.

Superstar Sauvignon Blanc

Sauvignon Blanc was the first wine to put New Zealand on the wine map, developing a cult following with millions around the world. More than 30 years later, it remains a superstar.

Exuberant, fresh, intense, pungently aromatic, unique – whatever words you use, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc has set the international benchmark for this style of wine.

More of our Sauvignon Blanc is grown in Marlborough than anywhere else. It’s here where there’s low rainfall, consistently high sunshine hours, and longer, cooler growing conditions that promotes stronger, more vibrant fruit flavours and higher acidity levels that results in wines that are more pungent, and crisper, with passionfruit and other tropical fruit flavours, red pepper (capsicum) and gooseberry characters. It’s a striking contrast to Sauvignon Blanc from further north where warmer, milder growing conditions result in riper and richer styles, with melon, nectarine and other stone fruit flavours.

On its own, Sauvignon Blanc is a mouth-watering aperitif, especially on a bright summer's day. Its zing is a perfect complement to the fresh flavours of seafood, and is an ideal match for more tangy foods, such as tomatoes or vinegar-based dressings.

A holistic and ambitious approach

When it comes to producing exceptional wines, we don’t rest on our laurels. We’re constantly striving to make every vintage the best ever.

We’re equally ambitious when it comes to sustainability. We’ve got some big goals to achieve across six focus areas: climate change, water, waster, plant protection, soil and people.

By 2050 we want to be a carbon neutral industry and we want to have zero waste going to landfill. We want to be world-leaders in efficient water use and protecting the health of our soils, and we want to be an industry of choice for workers.

It’s a lot, but we’re optimistic and we’re making good progress. Our glass is half full.

A rich history and an eye on the future

When founder Josip Babich first planted vines in West Auckland back in 1912, people thought he was crazy. More than 100 years later, a love of the craft, doing things by hand, and caring for the land, remains integral to the way Babich Wines work. For three generations, they’ve worked in harmony with the land and seasons to produce outstanding wines.

Back in 1997 Babich’s Fernhill vineyard in Hawke’s Bay was New Zealand’s first sustainably registered vineyard. Twelve years later they received their first organic certification. They now offer seven organic and sustainably certified wines, and own one of New Zealand’s largest organic, sustainable vineyards. They compost all their grape marc (the used skins) and use clever irrigation and smart technology. They’ve also expanded into vegan wines, using special plant-based proteins and ensuring the grapes aren’t touched by animal based fertilisers or sprays.

Wine in a can? Why not.

When Joiy Wines went about putting wine in a can, they knew that for some, the shift away from a glass bottle might somehow affect the traditional culture of wine. But for winemaker and founder Chris Archer, the magic is the wine, not the vessel.

With a philosophy of ‘Live for today. Look after tomorrow’, putting their wine in a can wasn’t a fashion choice for Joiy. It was about making a packaging decision that went beyond the grapes and about reducing their carbon footprint along every link in the chain, from vineyard to shelf.

Joiy’s cans are lighter and smaller than glass, meaning they take less energy to produce, ship, store, and chill, and they’re 100% recyclable. Plus they chill quickly and because of their size offer built-in portion control.

Regenerative agriculture and 100% organic

The rolling limestone hills of North Canterbury provide the perfect soil, climate and environment to grow Greystone’s 100% certified organic wines.

Greystone’s vineyards are managed using regenerative agriculture. This means companion plants such as sunflowers and phacelia flowers are used to fend off pests rather than using nasty synthetic sprays, and hundreds of native trees are planted every year to increase biodiversity, re-establish vegetation and attract native fauna. Winery marc (grape skins and seeds) is incorporated into their own compost to feed their soils. And to top it all off the winery is made from strawbales to passively insulate the barrels and keep a natural and even temperature.

It's this dedication to the finer details that has seen Greystone recognised as one of the best organic wineries around.

With such a choice from your wine producing neighbour, we’re here to help you serve up a variety of wine that comes bottled with care. Make an enquiry today.