It was the best of times and the worst for Sue and Greg White, corporate refugees who were sailing around New Zealand in their yacht when they took shelter in the Marlborough Sounds from Pacific storms, fell in love with the region and decided to settle on terra firma and start a winery. That was in the early 1990s. Greg has since passed away, leaving his wife Sue and daughter Sam, to run the now quite large winery that began as a humble small one. Long story short, Whitehaven Wines if our winery of the month for November - the last month in what has been, for many, a challenging year.

Whitehaven Wines is a member of Appellation Marlborough Wine (also known as AMW), a body that protects the authenticity of wine made in the country's largest wine region. It does this by stipulating that all wineries who belong to AMW must adhere to a strict code of using 100% Marlborough grown grapes in their wines.

Whitehaven is experimenting with other ethical considerations in its winemaking too. Underground irrigation is now replacing drip irrigation because this can cause damage whereas underground irrigation is more efficient and can use less water.

Whitehaven is experimenting with other ethical considerations in its winemaking too. The winemaking team is trialling underground irrigation and inter row planting to use less water and keep the soils healthy. Posts made from recycled plastics are now in some of the vineyards as the team finds new ways to combat plastic waste.

“We are certainly taking our roles as guardians of the land seriously and we will be doing more and more in this area to make sure we can deliver quality wine well into the future. The best way to do this is to look after the land and there are big plans for this, stay tuned. ,” says Danny Phipps, sales manager for Whitehaven and brother of Sue White. 

Whitehaven wine highlights...

2022 Whitehaven Pinot Noir Rosé 

If you notice Whitehaven Rosé is paler pink than previously, this is because it’s moving towards a drier style, a great move for this winery which now produces its rosé with under one gram residual sugar, making it super dry. Earlier picked Pinot Noir (100% in this wine) is used to make this wine. The grapes spent minimal time on skins and the result is a lively red fruity wine with super fresh dry flavours and a lingering finish.

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2022 Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc

This is one of the first to be bottled. Lively fresh and clean. Very fresh and bright and also approachable drinking right now.

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2022 Whitehaven Pinot Gris

Dry style with 2.7 residual sugar and naturally fruity flavours adding palate interest and body to this refreshing summery style. 

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* We have the full range of Whitehaven wines on special all month this November so pop on down to Regional Wines & Spirits to try and buy.