Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThis is an attractive, perfumed Sauvignon with heaps of lime popsicle, peach blossoms and dried green herbs. The palate is both chalky and slippery in texture, nicely balanced by crunchy acidity, bright fruit and dried herbs. Best Buy
Created by the team at Mud House, Hay Maker offers full-flavored, fresh Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand at an everyday price. Hay Maker wines are sustainably crafted and sourced from prime parcels of New Zealand’s best grape growing soils. The vineyards are selected for the way they impart fresh, regional-specific varietal flavors to the grapes. The brand’s sustainability carries right through to the packaging, which includes a one-color label that requires less ink, and a shipper of recycled cardboard. These natural-looking cues reflect the artisan care of the winemaking team.
They say, “Make hay while the sun shines,” and Hay Maker likes to add that “Every moment is a Hay Maker moment.” Find your own Hay Maker moment and enjoy it as an aperitif or with a variety of food.
An icon and leading region of New Zealand's distinctive style of Sauvignon blanc, Marlborough has a unique terroir, making it ideal for high quality grape production (of many varieties). Despite some common generalizations, which could be fairly justified given that Marlborough is responsible for 90% of New Zealand's Sauvignon blanc production, the wines from this region are actually anything but homogenous. At the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, the vineyards of Marlborough benefit from well-draining, stony soils, a dry, sunny climate and wide temperature fluctuations between day and night, a phenomenon that supports a perfect balance between berry ripeness and acidity.
The region’s king variety, Sauvignon blanc, is beloved for its pungent, aromatic character with notes of exotic tropical fruit, freshly cut grass and green bell pepper along with a refreshing streak of stony minerality. These wines are made in a wide range of styles, and winemakers take advantage of various clones, vineyard sites, fermentation styles, lees-stirring and aging regimens to differentiate their bottlings, one from one another.
Also produced successfully here are fruit-forward Pinot noirs (especially where soils are clay-rich), elegant Riesling, Pinot gris and Gewürztraminer.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.