Corofin, founded by Mike and Anna Paterson, is a small Marlborough estate focused on terroir-driven wines made with minimal intervention. The Meltwater range reflects this in a fresher, more approachable style while remaining true to the estate's organic ethos. For the 2024 Sauvignon Blanc, fruit was drawn from BioGro-certified vineyards in the Wairau and Omaka valleys, whose contrasting soils, the Wairau's free-draining gravels and Omaka's cooler clay, add breadth and structure. Certified-organic farming and restrained inputs keep the emphasis on site expression rather than overt technique. The result is a Marlborough Sauvignon of vibrant citrus and passionfruit character with a flinty, mineral edge, made in a textural, finely detailed style that departs from the region's more overtly aromatic norm.

Grapes for the 2024 were gently pressed and fermented at cool temperatures in stainless steel to preserve aromatic purity, protecting the wine's passionfruit, gooseberry and lime character. The wine then rested on its lees for around eight months, building texture and subtle complexity without obscuring varietal definition or adding oak flavour. This extended lees contact, unusual for a fresh Marlborough Sauvignon, gives the wine its saline edge and finer detail, while the cool handling keeps the fruit bright and precise. Minimal intervention through to bottling maintains the estate's transparent, site-driven signature. The finished wine is vibrant and expressive, with flinty mineral notes and a long, refreshing, saline finish that lends both freshness and texture.