V3 the weeding wonder
Developing Cloudy Bay's autonomous vineyard tractor has been a "dream experience" for Murray Faber, who began the project with a pile of scrap metal in the depths of Covid-19.
September was the month in which Marlborough based Cloudy Bay celebrated 30 years of life for their iconic wine brand. The first vintage in 1985 was made from grapes that were purchased from growers, some of whom remain suppliers to Cloudy Bay today.
In keeping with the brand’s evocative label, this year’s media celebration of 30 years took place under a shroud of thick Marlborough cloud and rain; at a four course lunch in the Marlborough Sounds. The celebration was also used to launch the 2015 Cloudy Bay Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, which contains 10% of barrel fermented Sauvignon Blanc this year; the highest proportion ever.
“We have been intentionally growing that portion of barrel ferment in order to add structure and weight to the body of Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc,” says Cloudy Bay senior winemaker Tim Heath.