Winemaker Brent Marris’ father was responsible for acquiring land for Montana Wines in Marlborough, New Zealand. To follow in his father's footsteps, Marris attended Roseworthy College in Australia, earning a degree in oenology.
Upon returning to New Zealand and gaining a comprehensive understanding of viticulture, wine marketing, and the wine business, Marris launched Marisco Vineyards with his wife in 2006.
With 1,000ha vineyards built in the Waihopai Valley of Marlborough, Marisco Vineyards is the maker of brands such as The Ned, Leefield Station, and The Kings Series. They specialise in Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Rosé, and Pinot Noir, the varieties Marlborough is known for.
The key to their philosophy is to allow the fruit to be the star. The wines reflect the region's true essence, emphasising its blue skies, green grass, and cold water, as well as its purity, brightness, and elegance.
One of the most critical factors affecting the taste of the wine is the soil type and climate conditions where the fruit is grown. Other factors include the type of yeast used for fermentation, the temperature of the ferment, the level of solids in the ferment, and the influence of oak.
“Because we grow our fruit in the Waihopai Valley, where the nights are 2-3 degrees cooler than the main Wairau Valley and the days 2-3 degrees warmer, that 4-6 degree difference every day during the growing season results in our fruit undergoing a long, slow ripening season, and the flavours become more intense and focused.”
According to Marris, minimal intervention is the key to success, focusing on growing the fruit well and controlling fermentation to maintain fruit flavours.
“Our Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, and Rosé bottling occur soon after fermentation and blending. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir spend approximately 12 months in a barrel and are bottled after they have been taken out and blended.”
Marris has been using gentle presses for better extraction to balance tradition and innovation, employing de-stemmers on harvesters and introducing continuous floatation for cleaning up juice solids. There has also been a significant improvement in the efficiency of fridge plants, and the pre-bottling filtration process has become more targeted.
His advice to aspiring winemakers or those seeking to learn more about the world of wine is to taste wines from different regions and comprehend what makes them unique.
“Understand that each country or region typically has a hero variety. Understand why and taste the different variants.”
Marisco Family Vineyards have always looked for ways to improve their wines by experimenting with different winemaking techniques, observing innovation in other countries, and working with leading businesses to advance the wine industry.
They believe that the future of winemaking will revolve around quality sight selection for vineyards, vine health, and minimal intervention during winemaking.
