Sherwood

Based in the picturesque Waipara Valley, Sherwood Estate is one of New Zealand’s largest independent, family-owned wineries - and one of the oldest. Sherwood Estate was launched in 1987 by Dayne and Jill Sherwood. Since that time, it has grown from a ‘one-man-band’ to a significant player in the New Zealand wine industry.

Sherwood Estate has complete control over its wine production, carrying out the entire process on its premises. The winery grows and harvests its own grapes, crafts the wine, bottles it and markets it. As a result, Sherwood Estate’s Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Riesling, Syrah and Pinot Noir wines are of extremely high quality. Sherwood Estate’s attention to detail and commitment to quality is why its sales are increasing annually and why it has survived for 25 years in a challenging industry. The winery is fully accredited under Sustainable Winegrowers guidelines, having been the first winery in Waipara to be fully certified.

The winemaking team of Petter Evans and Ian Whiteaker is dedicated to maximizing the potential of every grape grown on the vineyards and ensuring that every bottle of wine that rolls off the bottling line meets the exacting the expected standards. The team at Sherwood Estate have always been obsessed with the growing, making, and drinking of Pinot Noir. This obsession began over twenty-five years ago, long before it became fashionable to drink, let alone grow.

Dayne Sherwood recalls the response he received to plant Pinot Noir in the mid-1980s. “Many thought we were mad planting grapes at this time, let alone planting Pinot Noir. The majority of consumers had never heard of Pinot Noir as Cabernet Sauvignon was New Zealand’s red wine choice. I was told many times by those in the industry and those in the trade that we were wasting our time planting Pinot Noir would never sell. We were advised we would never be able to produce a good affordable Pinot Noir, accessible to all”.

Sherwood Estate owns over 260 acres of vineyards in Marlborough and the Waipara Valley. There are seven separate vineyard sites, which gives Sherwood Estate great scope for producing distinctive, regional style wines.