Brancott Estate

The roots of Brancott Estate can be considered as the roots of the entire New Zealand wine culture. It all started in 140s when an Dalmatian immigrant Ivan Yukich planted the first 0.5 acre vineyard in the west of Auckland in the 1940s. He named the vineyard Montana (Mountain in Dalmatian) as it was located high in the mountains of Waitakere Ranges. He sold his first Montana wine in 1952 and the rest is history. Montana Wines became the biggest wine company in New Zealand. The company were among the first to commercialize Marlborough region in southern island of New Zealand. The company was very focused on producing sparkling wines on latter part of the century. Its launched Lindauer brand in 1981 under which it produced various sparkling wines. The love for sparkling wines lead into joint venture company in 1989 with Champagne Deutz. Thanks to this project and Deutz Brut Marlborough Cuvée that draw the public attention to New Zealand sparkling wines and their potential. In 2000 Montana Wines was purchased by international spirit company Allied Domecq. In 2005 Montana Wines became part of Pernod Ricard after their acquisition of Allied Domecq. In 2010 Pernod Ricard decided to change the Montana Wines brand to Brancott Estate to avoid risks of mixing the brand's origin to Montana State in United States. Year later Pernod Ricard sold Lindauer and dozen other brands to Lion Nathan who had lost the Lindauer deal to Allied Domecq in 2000. Before  

FIRST MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC – Until the 1970s, Marlborough was just another pretty pocket of New Zealand, considered too cold for anything but sheep grazing. But here at Brancott Estate, we've always loved a challenge. Discover how our founders went against the grain to create Marlborough's first ever Sauvignon Blanc, changing the face of the region forever.

1970s LAYING THE GROUNDWORK – In 1973, the first seedlings were planted at the Brancott Estate Vineyard. But after two years of mixed success, we rethought tradition to take our vines in a new direction – literally. Thanks to the region's sunny days and crisp nights, our grapes developed a unique and fresh flavour profile – and by 1979 Marlborough's first ever Sauvignon Blanc was born.

1980s FROM MARLBOROUGH TO THE WORLD – The eighties got off to a good start, with our first release Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc winning Gold at the 1980 New Zealand Easter Show. In 1982, our first shipment of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was shared beyond our borders, as it headed for the UK. By the end of the decade, our Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was selected from more than 1100 competitors to win the prestigious Marquis de Goulaine trophy at the 21st International Wine & Spirit Competition.

1990s A GROWING RECOGNITION… – By 1990 the wine industry in Marlborough had become significant enough to welcome a visit from Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, who planted a vine on Festival Block, home of the Marlborough Food and Wine Festival since 1987. That same year saw the appointment of a new cellar hand, Patrick Materman, who would go on to become Chief Winemaker and lead the exploration into new expressions of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. Our 1996 Marlborough Chardonnay was voted International Wine of the Year and winemaker Andy Frost was named White Winemaker of the Year at the London International Wine Challenge. Today, Andy heads up our Wine Innovation programme, drawing on his vast experience to develop new expressions of Marlborough.

2000s…AND A CONTINUAL QUEST FOR DISCOVERY – Eleven years after joining as a cellar hand, Patrick Materman was named New Zealand Winemaker of the Year by Winestate Magazine. In 2006, Brancott Estate planted the first Sauvignon Gris vines in Marlborough, an ancient varietal that has faded into obscurity until a few vines were found and transplanted to New Zealand. Proving to be as well adapted to Marlborough as its near cousin, Sauvignon Blanc, the first Sauvignon Gris was released in 2009. The following year, Brancott Estate released its organic range, Living Land, and in 2011, the Brancott Estate Cellar Door and Restaurant opened its doors.

THE NEXT CHAPTER – After releasing the first ever vintage of Marlborough Sauvignon Gris, we launched Brancott Estate Chosen Rows, our finest age-worthy Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. We also released the first vintage of Flight, a fresh take on Sauvignon Blanc that's naturally lighter in alcohol. Our range of Sauvignon Blanc wines now includes sparkling, organic, oak-influenced, naturally low-alcohol, age-worthy and late-harvest wines. All the while, our signature Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc continues to hold its own, with a constant stream of awards and accolades from around the world.

Our winemaking philosophy is unencumbered by tradition and focused on capturing the remarkable, distinctive flavours of our home. 

From adopting screwcaps to advocating for stainless steel over oak, Brancott Estate understands what it takes to capture and enhance the fresh, bright flavours that people expect from a Marlborough wine.

This focus on discovery has seen us extend the perception of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc to include naturally low alcohol, sparkling, organic, vegan, oak-influenced, sub-regional, single vineyard, late-harvest and age-worthy expressions of our signature varietal.  

Brancott Estate has always had an eye on the future, advocating sustainability across all aspects of our business and beyond. As a founding member of New Zealand's original sustainable winegrowing initiative, we understand the importance of nurturing our region. Working in harmony with nature not only ensures the sustainability of our wine-making, but of the land itself and the life upon it.

We are committed to improving every step of the winemaking process and were the first Australasian winery to achieve five top international industry standards for quality, environment, health, and safety for all our sites. These accreditations are a way of ensuring we continue to focus on our customers, our people and our planet.