Kevin Judd put Marlborough on the world map, literally. In 1985, he signed the first Sauvignon Blanc of Cloudy Bay, a wine that would revolutionise the world's perception of the grape variety and introduce millions of enthusiasts to New Zealand's wine. Twenty-five years later, in 2009, he left Cloudy Bay to launch Greywacke, named after the grey rock omnipresent in the rivers and vineyards of the region, and proved, if proof were needed, that the best was still to come.
History / Heritage
Born in England, raised in Australia, Kevin Judd arrived in New Zealand in 1983 and met David Hohnen the following year. He became Cloudy Bay's first winemaker in 1985, a role he held for 25 vintages, building a style of Sauvignon Blanc recognised the world over. When Moët Hennessy acquired Cloudy Bay, Kevin took his time to leave with elegance, and quietly registered the Greywacke name as early as 1993. In 2009, with his wife Kimberley, he launched the project from the cellars of Dog Point (the property of former Cloudy Bay colleagues Ivan Sutherland and James Healy). Today, Greywacke is distributed in 55 countries, with 95% of production exported.
The Terroir
Greywacke owns no vineyards of its own but maintains long-term partnerships with Marlborough producers, notably the Sutherland family, who supply 70% of the fruit from their Wairau Valley and Southern Valleys vineyards. The rock that gives the estate its name greywacke, is a dense, low-permeability grey-green sedimentary sandstone found in the alluvial soils of Marlborough. These stony, well-drained soils force the vines to dig deep, guaranteeing a natural acidity and minerality that distinguish Greywacke's wines from the mass of ordinary Marlborough bottlings.
Viticulture and Winemaking
Kevin Judd is a proponent of minimal intervention and indigenous yeasts, for all his wines including the Sauvignon Blancs. His emblematic Wild Sauvignon cuvée is fermented entirely in barrels with wild yeasts, on fine lees for several months, according to a method that recalls white Burgundy. The result is a more textured, more complex wine, with an unusual savoury dimension for the variety. The Pinot Noirs benefit from 20% whole-cluster inclusion and 18 months of barrel ageing (30% new), a balance that yields aromatic and structured wines. The Chardonnay, the most confidential cuvée, is also vinified with indigenous yeasts.
Wines / Key Cuvées
The Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc is the benchmark wine: gooseberry, lime, fresh herbs, with a mineral depth that far exceeds Marlborough's standards. The Wild Sauvignon is the "signature" cuvée according to Kevin Judd himself: fermented and aged in barrels on fine lees with wild yeasts, it offers a creamy texture, a spiced and smoky dimension, and a persistence worthy of a great white Burgundy. The Pinot Noir, discreet but very assured, develops notes of cherry, truffle, and undergrowth with fine tannins and a beautiful energy.
Greywacke is the homecoming of a pioneer, a winemaker who helped create a global style, then decided to surpass it.
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History / Heritage
The estate was founded in 1958 by the father and uncle of the Engel brothers, who purchased parcels on the hillsides of Orschwiller at a time when the motorisation of the plains was pushing up the price of easily mechanisable land. Hubert and Christian Engel worked the estate for several decades before handing it over to the third generation: Pierre (in the cellar since 2018) and Jacques (in the vineyard more recently). The two brothers decided to undertake a radical transformation: they obtained organic certification in 2014 and Demeter certification (biodynamics) in 2022. They do not sell their wines in supermarkets: their focus is on short supply chains, wine merchants, and gastronomic restaurants.
The Terroir
The estate is planted on gneiss hillsides (quartz and mica) dominating the village of Orschwiller, with an ideal full south-east exposure. 13 hectares of a single contiguous block encircle the Grand Cru Praelatenberg, of which 8 are directly classified as Grand Cru. This granitic terroir, austere and mineral, gives the wines a tension and freshness characteristic of the site, with precise aromas and remarkable ageing potential. Lower down, a few clay parcels bring greater roundness. The range is classified under AOC Alsace, AOC Alsace Grand Cru Praelatenberg, and AOC Crémant d'Alsace. The cultivated grape varieties cover the full Alsatian spectrum: Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Muscat, Sylvaner, and Pinot Noir.
Viticulture and Winemaking
Biodynamics here is a philosophy of life as much as a technique. Pierre and Jacques Engel work the soils by hand and by horse, reduce inputs to the strict minimum, and respect lunar calendars for treatments and harvesting. In the cellar, the same minimalism applies: indigenous yeasts only, no industrial yeasts, no added sulphur on certain cuvées, no fining or filtration.
Wines / Key Cuvées
The Riesling Grand Cru Praelatenberg is the estate's flagship cuvée: from the finest gneiss parcels, it stands out for its electric minerality, aromas of citrus zest and wet stone, and a taut acidity that grants it excellent ageing potential. The Gewurztraminer offers, by contrast, all the generous exoticism of the variety, rose, lychee, and spice, but in a dry and precise register, without the usual heaviness. The Crémant d'Alsace range, from a blend of white varieties, is vivid, light, and floral.
Les Frères Engel are proof that Alsatian viticulture is renewing itself, that the younger generation can take up the torch with both respect and boldness, and that the Praelatenberg has not yet had its final word.
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