Cellar Selection Sauvignon Gris
⏳ Drinking Window
2023 - 2026
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Seared scallops, aromatic Thai chicken salad, and herb-roasted pork tenderloin.
✨ Technical Specifications
Villa Maria, founded in 1961 by Sir George Fistonich, has long been a pioneering force in New Zealand's wine industry. While Marlborough is globally celebrated for Sauvignon Blanc, this Cellar Selection bottling highlights its rarer, pink-skinned relative, Sauvignon Gris. Originating in Bordeaux, Sauvignon Gris thrives in Marlborough's free-draining alluvial soils and cool maritime climate. Villa Maria crafts this wine to emphasize texture and complexity, utilizing cool fermentation in stainless steel vessels with a portion undergoing lees contact. This technique coaxes out a luscious, rounded mouthfeel that beautifully balances the grape's natural stone-fruit richness and delicate floral aromas with a crisp, refreshing finish.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in 1961 by Sir George Fistonich, Villa Maria stands as one of New Zealand's most celebrated and pioneering wine producers. From its historic roots in Auckland, the winery has established extensive vineyard holdings across the premier winegrowing regions of Marlborough, Hawke's Bay, and Gisborne. Renowned for its steadfast dedication to sustainability and quality innovation, Villa Maria played an instrumental role in shaping modern New Zealand viticulture and championing regional expressiveness. The estate's diverse portfolio ranges from the globally recognized Private Bin series to site-specific single-vineyard and Reserve wines, excelling in vibrant Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, refined Pinot Noir, complex Chardonnay, and structured Hawke's Bay red blends.