Hunter's Wines

Hunter's Wines began with the daring vision of Ernie Hunter, an Irishman from Belfast who emigrated to New Zealand and turned from dairy farming to viticulture on the strength of a hunch that Marlborough's free-draining alluvial soils could produce world-class wine. In 1979 he planted approximately twenty-five hectares of vines on Rapaura Road in the Wairau Valley, near Blenheim, alongside the first wave of producers, including Montana (now Brancott Estate) and Cloudy Bay, who collectively established Marlborough as the centre of gravity for New Zealand fine wine. The maiden vintage came in 1982, anchored by Sauvignon Blanc, and the wines began collecting medals at the National Wine Show almost immediately. The breakthrough moment for both the winery and Marlborough as a region came in 1986, when Hunter's oak-aged 1985 Fumé Blanc won Wine of the Show at the Sunday Times Vintage Festival in London, an award credited with introducing the international fine wine market to New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Tragedy struck in 1987 when Ernie Hunter died in a road accident, leaving his Australian-born wife Jane, a viticulturist by training, to take over as owner and managing director at a precarious moment. Over the next four decades, Jane Hunter built the estate into a globally recognised brand, earned an OBE in 1993, was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM), and in 2013 became the first woman inducted into the New Zealand Wine Hall of Fame. She is widely referred to in the New Zealand wine press as the First Lady of New Zealand wine.

• Founded 1979 by Ernie Hunter, a Belfast-born Irishman, who planted approximately 25 hectares on Rapaura Road in the Wairau Valley
• Maiden vintage 1982 anchored by Sauvignon Blanc; medals at the National Wine Show from the earliest releases
• 1985 Fumé Blanc won Wine of the Show at the 1986 Sunday Times Vintage Festival in London, the breakthrough international moment for Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc
• Ernie Hunter died in a road accident in 1987; his widow Jane Hunter took over as owner and managing director and has led the estate ever since
• Jane Hunter awarded OBE (1993), CNZM, Wine Marlborough Lifetime Achievement (2016), Wolf Blass AM Award (2016); first woman inducted to the New Zealand Wine Hall of Fame (2013)

Hunter's flagship Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc remains the wine that built the house: a benchmark Wairau Valley expression of cut grass, gooseberry, passionfruit, and grapefruit with a piercing acid drive, balanced by riper stone fruit notes from the warmer Rapaura sub-zone. The Kaho Roa Sauvignon Blanc adds barrel fermentation and lees-aging for a richer, more textural rendering of the same fruit. The MiruMiru range, launched at the Penthouse in New Zealand House in London in 1997, is the estate's most strategically significant project after Sauvignon Blanc. The name means bubbles in te reo Maori, and Jane Hunter secured the trademark personally. The non-vintage MiruMiru is a classic traditional method blend of approximately 49 percent Chardonnay, 48 percent Pinot Noir, and 3 percent Pinot Meunier from Wairau Valley fruit, disgorged after a minimum of 18 months on lees, with a Rose and Reserve label completing the range. MiruMiru sits at the front of the New Zealand Méthode Traditionnelle conversation alongside Deutz Marlborough Cuvee, Cloudy Bay Pelorus, and No.1 Family Estate. Beyond Sauvignon Blanc and the sparkling line, the estate produces Marlborough Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Gris, and a late-harvest Hukapapa dessert wine. The newer Offshoot label, developed by the Macdonald brothers, captures small-batch experimental work including Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pet Nat releases aimed at younger drinkers.

• Hunter's Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc: benchmark Wairau Valley expression; cut grass, gooseberry, passionfruit, grapefruit, ripe stone fruit on a piercing acid spine
• Kaho Roa Sauvignon Blanc: barrel-fermented, lees-aged Sauvignon Blanc for a richer, more textural rendering
• MiruMiru Méthode Traditionnelle (launched London 1997): traditional method sparkling, ~49 percent Chardonnay, ~48 percent Pinot Noir, ~3 percent Pinot Meunier, minimum 18 months on lees; non-vintage, Rose, and Reserve labels
• MiruMiru name means bubbles in te reo Maori; trademark secured by Jane Hunter; one of New Zealand's leading traditional method sparkling brands alongside Deutz, Pelorus, and No.1 Family Estate
• Broader portfolio: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Hukapapa late-harvest dessert wine; Offshoot label for small-batch experimental releases including Pet Nat

The home estate sits on approximately 90 hectares in Rapaura, a sub-zone in the northern Wairau Valley between the Wairau River and the Richmond Range foothills. Rapaura is among Marlborough's warmest and stoniest pockets: a free-draining matrix of glacial gravels and silt loams over a high water table, with daytime highs amplified by reflective stone heat and night-time temperatures dropping sharply thanks to cool air drainage from the Southern Alps. The result is fruit with both intense varietal aromatics and ripe stone fruit weight, distinct from the herbaceous, leaner profile of the cooler southern valleys. Sauvignon Blanc accounts for the majority of plantings, complemented by Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for both still wines and MiruMiru, with smaller blocks of Riesling and Pinot Gris. All estate vineyards and winery operations are certified under Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ), the national programme founded in 1995 that now covers more than 96 percent of New Zealand's vineyard area. Hunter's also runs lightweight bottle programmes, water and energy conservation measures, and biodiversity plantings around the cellar door gardens.

• Approximately 90 hectares of estate vineyards in Rapaura, Wairau Valley, Marlborough
• Rapaura terroir: free-draining glacial gravels and silt loams; one of Marlborough's warmest, stoniest sub-zones; large diurnal swings from cool Southern Alps air drainage
• Sauvignon Blanc dominates plantings; Chardonnay and Pinot Noir support both still wines and MiruMiru; smaller blocks of Riesling and Pinot Gris
• 100 percent of estate vineyards and winery operations certified under Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ)
• Lightweight glass programme, energy and water conservation measures, and biodiversity plantings around the cellar door

Senior winemaker James Macdonald, Jane Hunter's nephew, leads the cellar after completing a degree in oenology and viticulture at Lincoln University and a series of overseas vintages. The Hunter's house style aims for purity of Wairau fruit balanced by texture and restraint, deliberately avoiding the extreme thiol-driven, tropical exuberance some Marlborough Sauvignons have pursued. The flagship Sauvignon Blanc is pressed gently, fermented cool in stainless steel with selected yeasts to preserve aromatic precision, and bottled early to capture the freshness of the vintage. Kaho Roa Sauvignon Blanc and the estate Chardonnay see barrel fermentation in French oak with extended lees contact for additional weight and savoury character. For MiruMiru, base wines from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier are made in the traditional method: secondary fermentation in bottle, minimum 18 months on lees for autolytic character (brioche, toasted nuts, fine creaminess), riddling, disgorging, and dosage to brut style. The Pinot Noir is fermented with a portion of whole bunches and matured in French oak (a proportion new) to highlight the bright cherry, herb, and savoury earth signature of Wairau Valley Pinot, while the Hukapapa late-harvest is made when seasonal conditions allow noble rot in the dessert blocks.

• Senior winemaker James Macdonald (Jane Hunter's nephew); Lincoln University oenology and viticulture degree; overseas vintage experience
• Sauvignon Blanc: gentle pressing, cool stainless steel ferment, early bottling for aromatic precision and Wairau purity
• Kaho Roa Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay: barrel fermentation in French oak with extended lees contact for added texture and savoury character
• MiruMiru: traditional method, secondary ferment in bottle, minimum 18 months on lees, riddling, disgorging, brut-style dosage
• Pinot Noir: whole-bunch portion in fermentation, French oak maturation; Hukapapa late-harvest produced when noble rot conditions develop

Jane Hunter is one of the most decorated figures in New Zealand wine history. Trained as a viticulturist in Australia, she took on a near-impossible task in 1987: stepping into the leadership of a fledgling Marlborough winery in the aftermath of her husband's death, in an industry that was at the time overwhelmingly male and just beginning to find international markets. She built Hunter's into a brand exporting to more than 28 countries, championed Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc on every major wine stage from London to Tokyo, and used her platform to support women in the industry. Her honours include the OBE (1993) for services to the wine industry, the CNZM, induction to the New Zealand Wine Hall of Fame in 2013 as the first woman, the Wine Marlborough Lifetime Achievement Award (2016), and the Wolf Blass AM Award in Australia (2016). The estate is now transitioning into its next generation under Jane Hunter's nephews James Macdonald (senior winemaker) and Edward Macdonald (general manager), while Jane remains as chairperson and matriarch. The Garden Bar and cellar door on Rapaura Road, set among manicured gardens and Ernie Hunter's original plantings, remains one of Marlborough's most popular destinations. The estate's strategic priorities are continued investment in Méthode Traditionnelle leadership through MiruMiru, premium Sauvignon Blanc innovation (including textural and barrel-aged styles), expansion of the Offshoot small-batch experimental range, and continued SWNZ-certified sustainability across all operations.

• Jane Hunter: OBE (1993), CNZM, NZ Wine Hall of Fame (2013, first woman), Wine Marlborough Lifetime Achievement (2016), Wolf Blass AM Award (2016)
• Next generation in operational leadership: James Macdonald (senior winemaker) and Edward Macdonald (general manager); Jane Hunter remains chairperson and matriarch
• Garden Bar and cellar door on Rapaura Road remain a flagship Marlborough destination; tastings and platters paired with the wines
• Strategic priorities: MiruMiru Méthode Traditionnelle leadership, textural and barrel-aged Sauvignon Blanc innovation, Offshoot small-batch range, continued SWNZ sustainability
• Estate remains 100 percent family owned, exporting to more than 28 countries worldwide