Goldwater Cabernet/Merlot 1999
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Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc
Goldwater wines have been producing expressive Marlborough wines since 1992. Our wines are sustainably produced and nurtured through the growing season by our talented and experienced team. These wines showcase the best the Wairau Valley of Marlborough has to offer.
Our history is rich and colorful. Goldwater was founded in 1978, making us among the oldest wine producers in New Zealand. Still revered as a pioneering producer in the Wairau Valley, Goldwater is renowned for bright fruit flavors and extraordinary textures. For more than three decades our talented viticultural and winemaking team has worked diligently to create wines that mirror the character and personality of our unique coastal region.
From the distant silhouetted mountains behind us to the indigo blue ocean before us, the Marlborough countryside is world famous and undeniably romantic. Our home, the celebrated Wairau Valley, is a place of wistful beauty and extraordinary terroir. There is a windswept elegance to Marlborough’s famed Wairau Valley, it is both the heart of the district and home to some of the country’s most famous wines. The region takes its name from the Wairau River, which flows from the alpine ranges in the west to the ocean at Cloudy Bay. Wines from the Wairau Valley are rich, elegant, generous and concentrated.
Stu Marfell grew up on a 2,000-acre farm a few miles from Goldwater in Marlborough. When not drenching and shearing sheep, Stu and his three brothers could be found swimming and fishing in the Awatere River. In 2003, after earning his degree in Viticulture and Oenology from Lincoln University in Christchurch, New Zealand, Stu landed the Assistant Winemaker’s position at Goldwater. He became Winemaker in 2007. “The Wairau Valley is a stunning place. We have a dry, windy, temperate climate with beautiful autumns. Our cool nights help retain acid and ?avor which is so important for Sauvignon Blanc.” Stu met his wife Emily through the Wairau Rowing Club in Marlborough. Both are exercise and outdoor fanatics and travel junkies. Stu also plays a mean ukulele.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
A relatively young but extremely promising wine producing country, New Zealand is widely recognized for its distinctive white wines made from the aromatic, Sauvignon blanc.
The world’s most southerly vineyards are found here, with significant climatic variation both between and within the warmer North Island and the cooler South Island. Overall, the climate is maritime, with plenty of rainfall, as well as abundant sunshine. Producers have almost unilaterally embraced cutting-edge winery technology, resulting in clean, high-quality New Zealand wines at every price point from wallet-friendly to premium.
Sauvignon blanc, known here for its trademark herbaceous character, is at its best in Marlborough but thrives throughout the nation, accounting for an overwhelming majority of the country’s exports. While this is indeed the country’s most planted and successful variety, it is certainly not the only New Zealand grape capable of delighting wine lovers.
Chardonnay is the second-most important white variety and takes on a supple texture with citrus and tropical fruit aromas in Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay, respectively. Pinot noir, second behind Sauvignon blanc in national production numbers, is at its best in Central Otago—the most southerly winegrowing region in the world! These New Zealand wines are known for bright and juicy red fruit. Taking cues from the wines of Alsace, aromatic varieties like Pinot Gris, Riesling and Gewürztraminer shine in Martinborough, while red wine Bordeaux varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot have found success in Hawke’s Bay. Throughout New Zealand but especially in Marlborough, Pinot noir and Chardonnay are used to produce traditional method sparkling NZ wines.