Villa Maria, Wairau Valley Sauvignon Blanc Reserve, Marlborough
Villa Maria · Marlborough › New Zealand
Critics Average score from professional wine critics and publications.
88
/100
Reviews
28
professional
Vintages
No vintages
NV
Community Reviews
3737
Reviews
88.4
Avg Score
93
Highest
Taster #7230
· Dec 15, 2025
Supple, fruity, elegant.
2020 vintage
Taster #7230
· Nov 24, 2025
Freshe elegant, fruit forward. Tropical fruit
2020 vintage
Taster #1401
· Sep 29, 2025
90/100
Gooseberry, cat's pee, guava. Typicity of NZ Sauv Blanc
2020 vintage
Taster #0261
· Feb 16, 2025
79/100
Doftar fläder lite rosor oljigt/petrolium lång rund fruktigt eftersmak
2020 vintage
Taster #7349
· Feb 8, 2024
87/100
Too vegetal
2020 vintage
Taster #7230
· Mar 11, 2023
Nose initially nondescript but but then apricot notes. FLinty dry, elegant, cool green pepper notes. 3*
2020 vintage
Taster #3308
· Feb 8, 2023
87/100
Tropical fruit - decent acidity. Still pretty enjoyable on second and third day.
2020 vintage
Taster #8587
· Nov 26, 2022
84/100
가성비갑
2020 vintage
Taster #4517
· Nov 1, 2022
91/100
Pale lemon. Pronounced intensity on the nose with ripe passion fruit, green pepper, asparagus, grass and wet stone. Pronounced intensity and dry on the palate with grapefruit coming through. High acidity, light body, medium alcohol, medium plus finish.
2020 vintage
Taster #1179
· Sep 3, 2022
87/100
Citrus and grass on the nose. Mineral body with stone fruit and lime.
2020 vintage
Taster #1007
· Aug 21, 2022
91/100
Light straw colour High intensity aromas of asperagus, snow pea, jalopeno, lime zest, gooseberries, peach, guava. High intensity palate. Medium body, high acid, long finish. Very well made wine. Herbaceous notes were a touch high, but balanced out after a bit of air.
2020 vintage
Taster #2789
· Aug 20, 2022
93/100
What a delicious Sauvignon Blanc. Sprightly but full flavored ripe fruit across the spectrum in perfect balance with citrus acid. May be too fruit forward for those seeking a very dry grassy mineral driven SB.
2020 vintage
Taster #9718
· Jul 30, 2022
89/100
Had it by glass. Lote of acidity combined with intense grapefruit. The finish was surpassingly long ang nice. Just felt that the fruit aromas could have been a tad bit stronger for a higher rating. But very nice value for the money !
2020 vintage
Taster #2626
· Jul 7, 2022
91/100
Fantastic wine. on the nose: guava, gooseberry, fruit cup, cut grass, leesy yogurt, cilantro Palate: lemongrass, lime zest, grapefruit Long finish, great acidity and structure, refined winemaking
2020 vintage
Taster #1265
· Jul 7, 2022
92/100
Bought Majestic UK £12.99 a promo price April 2022. Rich nose of ripe orchard stone fruit plus passion fruit and rock melon, just a hint of the Marlborough classic (that'll be classically annoying, for me) cut grass - thankfully. C....oddly pale T....med-dry in style; a nice brooding intensity, some real interest/complexity here; good concentration; some wet river stone minerals too; faint white tannins; great fruit but there's a restrained class to it, really well-made; ripe limes, pink grapefruit. Drinking superbly …
2020 vintage
Taster #2103
· May 5, 2022
מעולה
2020 vintage
Taster #9483
· Mar 19, 2022
86/100
Citrus, grapefruit and apple notes with perhaps some minerality coming through (Butter notes.. I did not get it) when I went from a cold to very cold glass (Ice bucket helped!). Pleasant enough citrus nose, and medium length finish. One of the more crowd pleasing easy to find wines locally. And tonight, this Kiwi SB did not disappoint. Glad AK brought two bottles of this! Special family dinner with TC, his sis, AKs families, at Unique Seafood in PJ. Pairing …
2020 vintage
Taster #2646
· Feb 22, 2022
Villa Maria zoom tasting (home) : 3 plots, all from Wairau, the warmest place in Marlborough, surrounded by mountains, fermentation using aromatic yeast, pH 3.30, RS 2.9 g/lt, t acid 7.3 The wine shows high intensity in the nose, very expressive, clean grass notes, tropical notes, melon, kiwi fruit, there is warmth, fine combination of fruit and grass, pear, granny smith apple The wine shows high intensity in the palate, high acidity, very grassy but no asparagus, the fruit lies …
2020 vintage
Taster #1952
· Feb 12, 2022
89/100
Similar to usual, but more acidity and less passion fruit. *** Very unusually, with this vintage day 2 and 3 is the best. It always was best on the first glass.
2020 vintage
Taster #6220
· Feb 9, 2022
89/100
A nice crisp chewy lightly grassy sandstoney Sauvignon Blanc but the alcohol at 13.5% is enough. Good value at 10 Euros. I have always liked the dialled back approach to Villa Maria Sauvignon Blancs but would prefer less alcohol here.
2020 vintage
Taster #9157
· Dec 13, 2021
Pale lemon Gosseberry, passion fruit, Pineapple Fresh bursting with vitality, Dry, med+ acid, med alc, med+ finish, singly lime, gooseberry, guava mango, tangerine VGQ Just primary fruit flavours, but with intensity & length.
2020 vintage
Taster #8018
· Dec 4, 2021
90/100
From a 375ml bottle. Gooseberries, tropical fruit and nettles on the nose. Medium to full bodied, dry, showing lush fruit of gooseberries, passionfruit, grapefruit and a bit of nettles and cat pee carried by firm acidity. Solid stuff every vintage. Very good.
2020 vintage
Taster #5509
· Oct 17, 2021
4 괜찮아요
2020 vintage
Taster #1952
· Sep 24, 2021
89/100
Typical Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with good QPR.
2020 vintage
Taster #1479
· Sep 4, 2021
깔끔한맛
2020 vintage
Taster #1240
· Aug 9, 2021
88/100
clean clear pale straw Peach, grapefruit, lemon, lime, jasmine on the nose Slight fizz Acid plus medium alcohol dry grapefruit and lime pith on the palate no phenolic bitterness A nice crisp aromatic white Maybe a touch less aromatic intensity than Nautilus
2020 vintage
Taster #4190
· Aug 6, 2021
89/100
For some Europeans like me it is a question what people buy more expensive N.Z wines with long shipping rather then take any other local Sauvignon Blanc next door. The wine like Villa Maria is the answer (to me), i tried it - amazing notes of gooseberry, touch of exotic fruit and lime. The wine has more full bodied character, round, full of flavors. Nice color, definitely enjoyable. Good price.
2020 vintage
Taster #7345
· Jun 7, 2021
88/100
Clear light yellow, but real yellow not white. Light body. High acidity. Vaguely aromatic, mainly tropical fruits, guava, apple, pear and peach, with the hints of citrus, mainly grapefruit, same on the palate only more, much more, intensive. All in all very nice wine, but if I need to buy this one or add 30 NIS for cloudy bay... will most likely never buy this one again.
2020 vintage
Taster #7494
· Jun 7, 2021
86/100
Fine for what it is ... cheap thirst quencher. A bit thin, a bit sharp ... but not offensive
2020 vintage
Taster #1149
· Apr 22, 2021
88/100
Color - Pale yellow Nose - Passionfruit, lime, Gooseberry. Palate - Lime and Grapefruit up front. Nice acidity, crisp. Marlboro style with a touch of Passionfruit.
2020 vintage
Taster #9157
· Apr 11, 2021
Gooseberry, passionfruit on the nose Dry, med+acid, hi alc, med body, med finish Very zesty lime in front of mouth, almost like a sherbet burst.
2020 vintage
Taster #6509
· Dec 8, 2020
89/100
2020 Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough) Exotic tropical aromas of kiwi, passion fruit and ripe Tuscan melon. Each of these is echoed in the taste with gobs of gooseberry “green” plus a twist of lime. Rich, round and racy. New Zealand in a bottle with the refreshing honesty of Jacinda Ardern, the spirited enthusiasm of the haka and more chill than a newly shorn sheep. Screw this year. Unscrew this wine. My house white. Say no more.
2020 vintage
Taster #4909
· Jan 20, 2016
87/100
nice ripe aromas of passionfruit, blackcurrant and lime, medium-bodied and spritzy acidity, but a touch of RS smooths out the long finish.
2014 vintage
Taster #5274
· Nov 23, 2015
89/100
Rounded gooseberry nose On palate,acidity is less astringent than many SB's, soft, flint finish
2014 vintage
Taster #9502
· Sep 11, 2015
88/100
Similar to my last bottle very typical NZ sauvignon blanc, tropical and refreshing. 88 points
2014 vintage
Taster #9502
· Jun 26, 2015
88/100
Pale yellow, typical nose for this wine that is quite powerful full of tropical fruits of lime, kiwi with gooseberry and a touch of flowers. The palate has all the same fruits, with nice acidity and it's clean and a has tingling finish, the fruit adds some sweetness with adds to it's charm. 88 points
2014 vintage
Taster #1312
· May 30, 2015
91/100
A clear plae lemon. clean nose with medium aromas of gooseberry, lime juice and a little red apple. A dry, high acid meduim bodied wine, with green apples, gooseberry and pear.. Medium finish, a very good wine. Richer, and sweeter than a typical Sauv, and the better for it. A lovely wine
2014 vintage