Our Story

Founded in 2004 by the then 23 year old Kate, Sugar Loaf Wines has been an adventure every step of the way, taking its name from the islands which lie off the stunning Taranaki Coastline where Kate grew up. 

After studying Viticulture and Oenology at Lincoln University and several brief stints overseas, Kate moved to Marlborough and got to work. In 2007 the opportunity arose to purchase a vineyard and disused apple cider factory, we set the winery up in time for 2008... just! and have continued to improve it every year since.

Today Kate lives in Mt Somers (Canterbury) with husband David and winemakers/farmers-in-training, Leo, Otto and Harriet. 

Kate is at the winery often and for the rest of the time manages from afar with the help of our very passionate and capable Marlborough winemaking team.The Sugar Loaf Winery is situated in the heart of Marlborough's world class wine-growing region, Rapaura. The winery is custom designed for small batch production and hands-on winemaking, giving us ultimate control through all stages of our wine production and the ability to do things a little differently.  

Our 21 hectare estate vineyard is home to some of the oldest vines in Marlborough, producing stunning Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Riesling. The vineyard carefully divided into management blocks specific to soil type, vine age and character. We also select parcels of fruit from a small number of growers across the Wairau and Awatere valleys, growers who share our passion and commitment to producing fine wines.

We also offer a state of the art custom crush facility to a small number of other high-end Marlborough producers. If you are interested in finding out more about this please contact kate@sugarloafwines.co.nz