Omaka Springs Estates is the sole producer of estate wines and olive oil in the Omaka Valley of Marlborough. All of our grapes and olives are grown on our 180 acre estate located in the very heart of the valley and all of our wine is created on-sight by Winemaker, Ian Marchant.
Owners Geoff & Robina Jensen were pioneers in the New Zealand olive oil industry when they planted their first olive trees in 1990. In 1992, they literally up-rooted the olive trees from their original plot in Nelson, and then re-planted the trees alongside existing vineyards at their new estate in the Omaka Valley. Today, the olive oil is still bottled by hand here at the estate or offered to our friends straight from the barrel.
"Omaka" is a Maori word which translates to "where the springs flow." Here in the valley, there are mineral-rich natural springs that meander through our vineyards, feeding the soils, and ultimately imparting a distinct, signature nuance of minerality in all our wines.
Originally from Nelson, Geoff Jensen has a long background in farming and aviation. Until Omaka Springs was purchased in 1992, Geoff had been following a successful 35 year career in aviation, spending his last years prior to early retirement as a Captain for British Caledonian, and then British Airways, flying the A320 Airbus.
When not airborne, he was breeding pedigree Suffolk sheep and planning his return to New Zealand using the many experiences gained during frequent visits to olive groves, vineyards and wineries throughout Europe.
During these years Geoff met Robina, originally from Fulham, London, who was at the time, a cabin Purser with British Airways.
Terroir
The Omaka Valley is a relatively flat area made up of free-draining, lighter soils and a mix of stones with some clay. The Southern Valleys benefit from diurnal temperature variations, meaning that the area experiences warm, sunny days in contrast to very cool nights. In grapes, this variation has the effect of producing high acid and high sugar content as the grapes' exposure to sunlight increases the ripening qualities while the sudden drop in temperature at night preserves the balance of natural acids in the grape.
Our vines typically display an early bud burst with a long ripening period which increases the intensity and ripeness of the grapes.
Winery
Since the winery was built in 1994, it has been expanded three times and it is now capable of handling upwards of 500 tonnes (40,000 cases) per vintage. Our winemaker, Ian Marchant, uses a combination of traditional winemaking techniques and modern technology to create our award winning wines.
Barrel Hall
Our Barrel Hall provides a sheltered environment for our Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Merlot to peacefully mature in French and American Oak Barriques. The barrel hall is also used as an onsite warehouse for our bottled wine.
Tank Farm
Our state of the art Tank Farm has a storage capacity of over 320,000 litres. It is there that our Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris are stainless steel fermented, then held in a temperature controlled environment until final filtering before bottling. Our Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Chardonnay initially also spend some time in the tank farm.
Ian Marchant
Winemaker
Ian Marchant has been involved in wines since 1978. He is originally from the UK and is a graduate of Roseworthy College in Applied Sciences and Oenology. After his training, Ian stayed around Australia for 13 years crafting wines for several notable wineries. Enticed by the idea of working for a smaller estate and having a closer relationship with the vineyard and fruit, Ian came onboard with Omaka Springs in 1998. Today, he continues to work closely with long-time Vineyard Manager, Richard Shepherd to grow high-quality grapes and produce award winning wines.
Ian Marchant uses minimalistic techniques allowing the grapes to show their own identity as he crafts the wines. This starts with the grapes being picked when they are organoleptically ripe - which may not be necessarily sugar ripe. The grapes are then crushed and pressed within 20 minutes of harvest to retain as much of the aromatics as possible. Neutral yeast is used for fermentation; again this allows the grapes to show their true flavours.
Then, with little intervention, the wine is fined and filtered for bottling. What Ian aims to achieve, is the characteristics of the terroir with his wines, and what makes the Southern Valleys area of Marlborough a magical place to grow wine.
Vineyard Manager
Richard Shepherd
Our vineyard and olive grove manager, Richard Shepherd (Shep), joined Omaka Springs Estates way back in 1994. He helped to develop the vineyard from 40 acres to 183 acres.
Shep is a born and bred mainlander has a wealth of experience in plant and stock management. He has worked in agriculture and forestry his entire life, over 40 years experience.
Shep leads a team of enthusiastic, experienced and dynamic vineyard staff who ensure our vineyards are managed to yield fruit with the ultimate balance of complexity and structure.
Kennedys Road Vineyard
The initial 40 acres of land situated on Kennedys Road, included a 16 acre vineyard growing Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Merlot. To this Geoff added another 15 acres of land, increased the plantings of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Merlot, and added new varieties Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to bring the total Kennedys Road vineyard to 55 acres of land with 35 acres of vines and a production target of 150 tonnes. In 2011, Gruner Veltliner was introduced.
Falveys Road Vineyard
In 1995, 92 acres of exceptional land was purchased at Falveys Road block, still in the Omaka Valley and only 2 kms from the Kennedys Road Block. In 2003, we were fortunate enough to purchase a 31 acre block of land adjacent to our established Falveys Road property and the total land area has now increased to 123 acres.
This land was planted with Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Merlot and Pinot Noir and the Estates root stock nursery. The target vineyard production set at 350 tonnes of premium varietal cool climate grapes. 2007 was the last vintage produced of the Omaka Springs Estates Riesling. We have recently planted 3 acres of Syrah.
Margaret Kramer
VP of Sales & Marketing
Margaret is responsible for business development, sales and marketing as well as managing all global exports and local distribution of our wines and oil.
Originally from the US, she has been involved in food and wine for over 17 years. She has been living as an ex-pat in Marlborough, currently residing in beautiful Cloudy Bay.
Margaret's passion is driven by working in the team dynamic of small, family owned wineries such as Omaka Springs. She enjoys being involved in every aspect of the winemaking process from grape to glass.
Samantha Cresswell
Accountant
Sam is our Company Accountant and has a background in both Commercial and Chartered Accountancy.
She is a UK native who lived in Australia for 3 years before joining Omaka Springs Estates in 2002.
She looks after all our accounting and administration requirements and ensures the office is run smoothly.
Colleen McKay
Vineyard Health & Safety Advisor
Colleen grew up in agriculture, working with her family on dairy farms throught the islands. She also has over 13 years experience working in plant nurseries. As Team Safety Advisor, Collen works hard to keep us all safe on the job at Omaka Springs.
Through the week she says she enjoys the wide variety of tasks she completes in the vineyard, but always looks forward to golfing or gardening on the weekend.
Colin Mortimer
Vineyard Worker/Machinery Ops
Colin, or "Mort," as he is known to his friends, came to Omaka Springs from a background in engineering and agriculture. He has been employed at such various places as Dominion Salt Works, Cuddons Ltd., and Seresin Estates.
Mort works hard to keep our vines looking amazing, but on the weekends he plays even harder - keeping active with bowling, softball, rugby, tennis, and brass band.
Dixie Jensen
Vineyard Dog
Dixie, the Omaka Springs Estates Dog, is a young German Short Haired Pointer. She is very affectionate, cheerful and energetic. Dixie loves to run around in the vineyard and chase away the birds and rabbits. Occasionally she brings her animal finds home, much to the pleasure of the hawks in the area.
