Grape

Sauvignon Blanc

Its Origins

Astrolabe was created in 1996 by winemaker Simon Waghorn, the culmination of a career that began in South Australia in 1982. Winemaking later led Simon and his family from Te Kauwhata to Gisborne, where he specialised in Chardonnay, and eventually to Marlborough where in 1996 he and his wife Jane Forrest-Waghorn joined with old friends Paul Davenport and Sally Lewis to have a go at their own label…and so began Astrolabe. Today they work with a number of growers scattered all over Marlborough, from Awatere valley to the Kekerengu coast to the Wairau Valley, developing a wide portfolio of iconic wines that celebrate the varieties and terroirs of Marlborough.

What The Critics Say

96/100 Bob Campbell MW

"Taihoa is a flagship, barrel-fermented sauvignon boasting more weight, complexity and texture thanks to vineyard selection and oak treatment. This impressive wine combines a powerful fruit expression with oak and yeast lees characters. 05 NOV 2018." Drink 2018 - 2022

4.5 Stars Michael Cooper (2016 vintage)

"Grown at Kekerengu, south of the Awatere Valley, the 2016 vintage (4.5*) was hand-picked and fermented and matured in old French oak barrels. Pale lemon/green, it is full-bodied, with concentrated melon and green capsicum flavours, showing good complexity, a minerally streak, and a dry (4.3 grams/litre of residual sugar), crisp finish. Drink now or cellar."