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Colour divider for Appellation Marlborough Wine

There's no place in the world like Marlborough, and no wine in the world that tastes like ours, especially our Sauvignon Blanc. We believe that it is worth protecting.

Appellation Marlborough Wine was introduced and trademark registered in 2018 to safeguard Marlborough Wine, initially focused on Sauvignon Blanc, whose purity and flavour intensity has earned it a phenomenal global reputation.


With this global demand, comes the proliferation of players and a range of quality expectations, which can put this hard-earned reputation at risk. AMW has been established to safeguard Marlborough wine for future generations to enjoy and provide assurance to consumers who seek wines of provenance, authenticity and integrity.


Appellation Marlborough Wine, is the only guarantee a wine is 100% pure Marlborough. Nothing else. No exceptions. Always look for the AMW icon on the label.

Wine Map of Marlborough


Appellation Marlborough Wine and The Marlborough Wine Map Collective are excited to share the Wine Map of Marlborough, a beautifully designed reference tool that delineates the Marlborough wine growing region for the first time.

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Because there’s no place in the world like Marlborough.

There’s no place in the world like Marlborough, and no wine in the world that tastes like ours.


Our grape country begins with the varied alluvial soils of the Wairau Valley, fed by the mountain waters of the Wairau River. It stretches out to the corrugated Southern Valleys, with their clay loam hillsides, and to the arid Awatere Valley, where golden hills and verdant vines are swept by Pacific winds.


Warm by day and cool by night, Marlborough’s climate is influenced by the ocean to the east and the mountains to the west, and by the valleys and ridgelines rippling its topography. Grapes ripen and develop flavours during big blue-skied days, then pause at night, protecting acid levels in a lingering approach to harvest.


That extraordinary synergy between climate, landscapes and soil means Marlborough wines, when grown with care, are both sophisticated and exciting. They have distinctive aromas, unique fruit characteristics and elegantly balanced acidity, with a purity and flavour intensity that has earned us a global reputation as a phenomenal wine region.


To wear the Appellation Marlborough Wine icon, wines must be made from grapes that are 100% sourced from Marlborough vineyards. It is a promise that these wines are an authentic expression of Marlborough.

Because it takes more than good luck to make great wine.

Marlborough is an extraordinary place to grow wine, and we know we are fortunate to be here. But it takes more than good luck to make great wine.


It takes devoted and intelligent vineyard management that recognises the unique attributes of every block and every season, with canopies and crop levels adjusted to balance both vines and wines. It takes viticulturists and winemakers who know their vineyards block-by-block and row-by-row, sensitive to the vagaries of nature and variation of vintages, seeking the best possible fruit from the season.


Such steadfast dedication to quality has helped earn Marlborough wine a formidable reputation on the global stage. Appellation Marlborough Wine was created to safeguard the integrity of that reputation, by including only those wines that meet our standards.


To wear the Appellation Marlborough Wine icon, wines are tasted blind and approved for certification by an independent panel of qualified, experienced local producers. 


The Appellation Marlborough Wine icon provides a guarantee that the wine buying public of the world can see and trust.

Because Marlborough wine should be just that.

Appellation Marlborough Wine was launched in 2018 by a group of passionate producers determined to protect the authenticity and integrity of the region’s wine.


The AMW icon is a promise that the grapes for each wine are 100% Marlborough grown, from vineyards that are 100% sustainable, and at cropping levels that bring balance to the vines and the wines. All the wines are bottled in New Zealand, ensuring absolute authenticity.


There are 53 members signed up to Appellation Marlborough Wine, including some of the region’s most prestigious labels. The AMW icon is now being worn by bottles of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc around the world, as a promise of provenance.


Appellation Marlborough Wine is a timely evolution for a major international wine region, established to protect the integrity of Marlborough wine in the market place. 





Because Marlborough wine is a natural gift, worth protecting.

Marlborough is a naturally extraordinary place that produces naturally extraordinary wine. So kaitiakitanga – a Māori word for the guardianship of our environment – is integral to our success. 


All wines certified by Appellation Marlborough Wine must hail from vineyards certified by Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand, BioGro NZ or equivalent. 


SWNZ pillars include biodiversity, soil, water, air and energy, requiring certified vineyards to meet globally recognised standards to protect the environment. Many of the Appellation Marlborough Wine members go above and beyond those benchmarks, says Cloudy Bay Estate Director Yang Shen. “Because Marlborough wine is a natural gift, and 100% worth protecting.”







  • ORIGIN

    Because there’s no place in the world like Marlborough.


    There’s no place in the world like Marlborough, and no wine in the world that tastes like ours.


    Our grape country begins with the varied alluvial soils of the Wairau Valley, fed by the mountain waters of the Wairau River. It stretches out to the corrugated Southern Valleys, with their clay loam hillsides, and to the arid Awatere Valley, where golden hills and verdant vines are swept by Pacific winds.


    Warm by day and cool by night, Marlborough’s climate is influenced by the ocean to the east and the mountains to the west, and by the valleys and ridgelines rippling its topography. Grapes ripen and develop flavours during big blue-skied days, then pause at night, protecting acid levels in a lingering approach to harvest.


    That extraordinary synergy between climate, landscapes and soil means Marlborough wines, when grown with care, are both sophisticated and exciting. They have distinctive aromas, unique fruit characteristics and elegantly balanced acidity, with a purity and flavour intensity that has earned us a global reputation as a phenomenal wine region.


    To wear the Appellation Marlborough Wine quality mark, wines must be made from grapes that are 100% sourced from Marlborough vineyards. It is a promise that these wines are an authentic expression of Marlborough.

  • INTEGRITY

    Because it takes more than good luck to make great wine.


    Marlborough is an extraordinary place to grow wine, and we know we are fortunate to be here. But it takes more than good luck to make great wine.


    It takes devoted and intelligent vineyard management that recognises the unique attributes of every block and every season, with canopies and crop levels adjusted to balance both vines and wines. It takes viticulturists and winemakers who know their vineyards block-by-block and row-by-row, sensitive to the vagaries of nature and variation of vintages, seeking the best possible fruit from the season.


    Such steadfast dedication to quality has helped earn Marlborough wine a formidable reputation on the global stage. Appellation Marlborough Wine was created to safeguard the integrity of that reputation, by including only those wines that meet our standards.


    To wear the Appellation Marlborough Wine quality mark, wines must be made from grapes that are cropped at or below set parameters, established according to seasonal and soil variability. Where cropping levels exceed that level, wines must be approved by an independent panel of experienced local producers.


    Appellation Marlborough Wine provides a regional quality mark that the wine buying public of the world can see and trust. 

  • AUTHENTICITY

    Because Marlborough wine should be just that.


    Appellation Marlborough Wine was launched in 2018 by a group of passionate producers determined to protect the authenticity and integrity of the region’s wine.


    Our quality mark is a promise that the grapes for each wine are 100% Marlborough grown, from vineyards that are 100% sustainable, and at cropping levels that bring balance to the vines and the wines. All the wines are bottled in New Zealand, ensuring absolute authenticity.


    There are 49 members signed up to Appellation Marlborough Wine, including some of the region’s most prestigious labels. The quality mark is now being worn by bottles of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc around the world, as a promise of provenance.


    Appellation Marlborough Wine is a timely evolution for a major international wine region, established to protect the integrity of Marlborough wine in the market place. 

  • SUSTAINABILITY

    Because Marlborough wine is a natural gift, worth protecting.


    Marlborough is a naturally extraordinary place that produces naturally extraordinary wine. So kaitiakitanga – a Māori word for the guardianship of our environment – is integral to our success. All wines certified by Appellation Marlborough Wine must hail from vineyards certified by Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ). The certification body, which won Green Initiative of the Year at the 2017 Drinks Business Green Awards, challenges New Zealand vineyards to be at the frontier of global sustainability measures.


    SWNZ pillars include biodiversity, soil, water, air and energy, requiring certified vineyards to meet globally recognised standards to protect the environment. Many of the Appellation Marlborough Wine members go above and beyond those benchmarks, says Cloudy Bay Estate Director Yang Shen. “Because Marlborough wine is a natural gift, and 100% worth protecting.”

Colour divider for Appellation Marlborough Wine


It is a promise that these wines are an authentic expression of Marlborough.


JOHN BUCHANAN, MOUNT RILEY WINES

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