Spy Valley Wines

Spy Valley Wines: Award-winning Marlborough wines

Spy Valley Wines - beginning and present

It always feels like a family reunion, when we visit Spy Valley. And it indeed is a story about a family, which has transformed a vision into an amazing international success.

The 1990s were a time of discovery and courage in Marlborough. Deep in the Waihopai Valley, Bryan and Jan Johnson had the audacity to establish 180 hectares of estate vineyards on land considered too hard, too dry and too unfertile for wine.

They have chosen the terroir for its stony, free-draining riverbed terrain. It turned out a perfect choice. Not only beautiful, the landscape means our terraced vines enjoy a mix of riverside gravel, clay and silt soils which help to give the wine its unique flavour.

"Spy Valley Wines is evocative in name and in the taste of its outstanding aromatic whites, its excellent value for money Pinot Noir…" - Joelle Thomson, Wine Writer & Author
 

It was a venture that started with a passion for the land. This pioneering spirit established one of New Zealand’s most successful family-run wineries, now exporting its wines to 35 countries. Today, Spy Valley is led by the second generation of the Johnson family, Amanda Johnson.

Spy Valley stands for a respectful approach to nature and sustainable vineyard management. The wines reflect the care given to soil and vine – always with the aim of capturing the essence of the terroir in every bottle.

Spy Valley has a modern fully integrated winemaking facility, strong attention for detail and focus on quality in their wines made from eight different grape varietals.

The name Spy Valley

The name Spy Valley derived its name from the presence of an international satellite base located just down the road from the estate - Marlborough’s very own spy base.

Spy Valley Wines: the flavour of the place

In the middle of Aotearoa (New Zealand), at the tip of the South Island, is a place of remarkable natural beauty. The spectacular, diverse landscape of Marlborough assails the senses with its vivid seasonal colours, kissed by the sun year-round.

Imagine a land so outrageously beautiful, a land flanked by the soaring Southern Alps and the stunning Marlborough Sounds, an extensive network of coastal waterways, peninsulas and islands nestled in the shimmering ocean.

Follow your nose along the Wairau basin’s long green valley, dry hills and alluvial plains, and you have arrived at the heart of the Marlborough wine region.

To this, add hot sunny days and cool nights, a climate which caused Maori to call the area ‘the place with the hole in the cloud’. The result of this unique climate and topography? Vines ripening in the sun like nowhere else on earth. A synergy so good you can almost taste it; the flavours of Marlborough spilling over into the wine.

Sustainability at Spy Valley

They have been certified sustainable since 1999. Proudly accredited under the New Zealand Sustainable Winegrowing scheme which promotes economically and environmentally sustainable vineyard management.

Their bottles are made of up to 80% recycled glass. To further support lowering their carbon footprint, they’ve moved to lighter weight bottles. When a bottle of NZ wine lands on a dining table in Europe, almost 60% of its carbon cost is the bottle. Their sustainable philosophy aims to minimise that cost. Spy Valley's 12-pack cartons are 100% recycled cardboard with their 6-pack cartons being approx. 80% recycled cardboard.

They have over 200 solar panels on the winery roof. It generates the equivalent amount of power consumed by 5 family homes over a year. During winter months they graze sheep to keep the grass down and reduce the amount of mowing required.

They are proud to support and advocate for Ecologi - an impactful environmental organisation. You’ll find the logo on the back of all Satellite wine bottles that leave NZ in an effort to raise awareness. So far, they’ve planted over 10,000 trees and offset over 790 tonnes of CO2.