Allan has nearly 40 years in the wine business, which makes him one of the most experienced people in Marlborough when it comes to growing, making, and marketing wine. When Allan and his wife Catherine decided to settle here in 1973, (Cathy is a fifth-generation Marlburian) Allan took a job with Montana working in their new vineyards.
Sauvignon Blanc is the flagship varietal of New Zealand, and is typically a very crisp aromatic wine with notes of grapefruit, tropical fruit and cut grass. The much-lauded white wines of New Zealand tend to be slightly sweeter than those from Bordeaux and the Loire Valley and are hugely influenced by the growing conditions of the country.
Esk Valley has come a long way since Sir George Fistonich purchased the historic Glenvale Winery from the Bird Family in 1986. From a time when ports and sherries ruled the market, Esk Valley began forging a reputation for its innovative and quality wines. Under winemaker Gordon Russell Esk Valley broke boundaries introducing new grape varieties and new wine styles to Hawkes Bay.
The Crossings wines are sourced from our wild riverside vineyards in the Awatere Valley. Gouged out by ancient glaciers, The Awatere Valley is Marlborough’s most dramatic and most premium winegrowing sub-region. It is the southern-most, driest and coolest of the three sub-regions, boasting a rich diversity of soil structures, large diurnal shifts and slow-ripening grapes for more intense fruit flavours and fresher, crisper acids.