Blank Canvas
Holdaway Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2025 750ml

 ACCOLADES

‘This single-vineyard wine is grown at Dillons Point, in the lower Wairau Valley. Harvested from vines averaging 25 years old, the vigorous 2025 vintage was tank-fermented, aged briefly on its light yeast lees and bottled by August. Pale lemon/green, it is mouth-filling and dry (2 grams/litre of residual sugar), with pure, well-ripened, passionfruit/lime flavours, showing excellent intensity, and a crisp, finely textured, sustained finish. Best drinking mid-2026+.’

5 STARS | MICHAEL COOPER MA ONZM | DECEMBER 2025

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‘If for some reason the wines of Blank Canvas have eluded you to date, it really is time you got on board. These guys are making some of the most exciting wines for the region and they are very much behind the push to ensure that Marlborough can be seen as a region making great Sauvignon Blanc, rather than the bog average tankerloads headed to supermarkets and which is then foisted on most of the world. In fairness, those tankerloads are not disappearing any time soon, but it doesn’t mean that there can’t also be some superb examples of the variety made here. From the Holdaway Vineyard at Dillon’s Point in the Lower Wairau, fermentation is in stainless steel with maturation following, on lees. A cracking Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. The colour is lemon/green. This is beautifully constructed, refined and focused, with direction, great length and immaculate balance. The nose offers tropical hints with gooseberries, hints of passionfruit and citrus. A vibrant style which dances across the palate. There is great length here. A wine which can be enjoyed over the next half dozen years. If you like Sauvignon Blanc, this is for you. A cracking Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. The colour is lemon/green. This is beautifully constructed, refined and focused, with direction, great length and immaculate balance. The nose offers tropical hints with gooseberries, hints of passionfruit and citrus. A vibrant style which dances across the palate. There is great length here. A wine which can be enjoyed over the next half dozen years. If you like Sauvignon Blanc, this is for you.’

95 POINTS | KEN GARGETT | WINE PILOT | JANUARY 2026

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‘From the Holdaway vineyard in Dillons Point, which is farmed regeneratively. Amazing aromatics of elderflower, tomato leaf and green pepper. Crystalline palate with lemon and grapefruit, as well as some green pepper, and keen acidity. Such lovely fruit here: it’s an amazing expression of Marlborough Sauvignon.’

93 POINTS | JAMIE GOODE | WINE ANORAK | JANUARY 2026

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‘Palest gold in color, this wine smells of blackcurrant leaf and lime zest with a hint of wet wool. In the mouth, stony flavors of lemon pith, green apple, black currant leaf, and wet wool have an interesting savory quality and a faintly chalky texture. Excellent acidity with a stony resonance in the finish. Regeneratively farmed fruit, 25-year-old vines, machine harvested. Fermented in stainless steel and matured on light lees.’

9-9.5 POINTS - TOP EQUAL SCORING SAUVIGNON BLANC | ALDER YARROW | VINOGRAPHY.COM | DECEMBER 2025

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‘All the classic Marlborough aromas of capsicum, blackcurrant leaf and a touch of passion fruit but without being overly pungent. In the mouth, this is surprisingly rich, gently chewy and creamy at the same time. The texture has added to the depth first provided by the fruit. Firm, mouth-filling and fresh. No unwanted sweeteness so it finishes long, salty and dry. A complex style that still highlights Sauvignon’s fruit profile. I think it must be quite difficult to make distinctive Sauvignon Blanc but this is distinct in its depth and complexity while retaining vibrant fruit without going down the reduction/struck-match route. Not one of the cheapest Marlborough Sauvignons but GV. Really long finish – with that lovely leesy grip.’

17 POINTS | JULIA HARDING MW | JANCISROBINSON.COM

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 ‘Alongside some signature Marlborough flavours of passionfruit and white currant and pink grapefruit, there is something that has hints of Chablis in the dry minerality and salty acidity as well. “Love the acidity and ‘seed’ tones through the palate” appear in the tasting notes. Some richness and depth are also a feature, before a finish that carries for some distance – pithy and dry.’

SELECTED TOP 10 TASTING (#6) - NZ SAUVIGNON BLANC - WINEFOLIO | DECEMBER 2025