Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2025 is open and expressive on the nose, with aromas of peach, elderflower, makrut lime and freshly squeezed lemon. The palate is bright and layered with lemon curd and white nectarine, lifted by a refreshing character that recalls a cool sea breeze at the end of a warm day, with hints of sea salt and dune grass.

There is a sense of poise in every sip. The refined mid-palate is carried by steel-cut citrus acidity and an elegant, lingering finish. From 80 different portions tasted, only 61 were selected for the final wine.

In our "Vintage 2025 : A Story of Patience" article, we shared how this year’s harvest unfolded in slow motion. Normally, harvest at Cloudy Bay is a whirlwind of unrelenting action, but nature had other plans for 2025.

For Sauvignon Blanc, that patience proved essential. The vines carried the largest bunches in memory, and the ripening process was prolonged. Waiting, tasting, and holding our nerve made all the difference. The result is a wine that shows just what patience can achieve: the bright, expressive, and beautifully poised Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2025.

Our Sauvignon Blanc comes largely from vineyards planted on the Wairau Valley floor, where the climate and free-draining gravelly soils are perfect for Sauvignon Blanc. This includes the Estate, Motukawa, Widow’s Block, Red Shed, and Mustang vineyards.

Fruit from each vineyard ferments separately before blending, a critical step in maintaining Cloudy Bay’s famous consistency. Rather than blending to make more wine, the winemakers carefully select the right grapes (from over 90 batches) for each year’s wine. This means the quantity may change, but never the quality.

The season began with extraordinary promise. Early December brought an exceptional flowering, and the vines responded with the largest bunches in living memory. The ripening process was more prolonged than in recent years, and having the ability to wait until optimum flavour and concentration made this an extra satisfying vintage for the Vineyard team.

To manage those generous bunches, the team took extra care. “Sauvignon Blanc this year had an exceptional flowering, which meant there was a high number of berries per bunch that set,” says Hannah Ternent.

“A process of shaking the vines to drop berries off was also undertaken across several Sauvignon Blanc blocks, which creates a looser bunch architecture, giving the berries space to develop.”

At first, the vintage began ‘business as usual’, with yet another early harvest on the cards.

“The start to harvest was the second earliest we have had,” recalls winemaking director Nikolai St George.

“We started building momentum and chipped away at the earlier varieties, such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Then, just as we started getting into the Sauvignon Blanc, everything came to a grinding halt. The vines decided they just were not ready, so we had to wait a week for the Sauvignon Blanc to be properly ripe.”

That pause stretched the harvest and changed its rhythm.

“This resulted in an elongated vintage where everyone was waiting and practising patience,” says Nikolai.

Inside the winery, the difference was just as noticeable.

“It was a weird vintage…Even when Sauvignon started, there were only one or two days when we felt the usual harvest pressure,” says Kelly Stuart. “Because the fruit came in slowly, we didn’t have to use our old press until the end, and we didn’t realise how the noises of the old presses and fruit hitting the hopper were such a part of harvest.”

For Hannah Ternent, the lesson was one of calm. “Vintage 2025 for Sauvignon Blanc was one where we had to be patient, take our time and let the fruit ripen properly…we had to calm our nerves and wait and hope the weather would hold, which fortunately it did, and we ended up with some stunning ripe parcels of Sauvignon Blanc.”

Looking back, vintage 2025 may be remembered less for drama than for discipline. It was a season of waiting, of listening, of trusting the fruit to find its own rhythm. Now, with Sauvignon Blanc 2025 in the glass, we see what patience can bring: a wine of clarity, elegance, and true Marlborough character.

At Cloudy Bay, we’ve long said that Sauvignon Blanc is one of the most versatile wines at the table, pairing beautifully with fresh seafood, summer vegetables, and vibrant spicy flavours. Lately, Sauvignon Blanc has even found viral fame as the “Spicy Sauvy B” on social media, with jalapeño slices dropped into the glass.

Nikolai St George has his own take.

“For the record, the perfect pairing for Sauvignon Blanc 2025 is grilled Shishito peppers,” he says. “Beats jalapeño in your wine any day."

Sauvignon Blanc 2025 is a natural match for almost any seafood. Some of our favourites at the winery include tempura oysters, locally-caught sashimi, and steamed mussels with garlic, citrus and parsley. It’s also a great match for green salads and goats’ cheese. A hint from us: if it goes with lemon, it goes with Sauvignon Blanc.