White Wines

Premium quality grapes harvested at optimum maturity, from some of the world’s finest vineyards, plus the passionate winemaking of Matt Thomson, allows us to bring you these elegant, world class wines from Marlborough. Neal and Judy Ibbotson were pioneers in the Marlborough wine industry, first planting vineyards in the valley’s unique climate and soils in 1978 and then establishing Saint Clair Estate in 1994. The almost extinct Tuatara, cousin of the dinosaur, is still to be found on Stephens Island in the Marlborough Sound, not far from Saint Clair’s vineyards, and gives its name to a pair of their fruit driven Sauvignon and Chardonnay wines. When the oceans in the havens became too warm then Mango (the shark), and Tuatara (the great lizard) came down to earth in search of cooler waters. It was then that Mango said to Tuatara, "Let us reside on land".They argued at length until Mango said to Tuatara: "Very well, remain on land to be loathed by all".Tuatara replied: "That will give me distinction, and I will thrive, but you will be hauled up with a hook in your mouth, cast into a canoe, and pounded with a fernroot- pounding mallet, after which you will be hung to dry like a wet rag"."Maori Religion and mythology" Eldson Best.