Kevin Judd passes the baton

WITH his 25th vintage with the winery approaching, Cloudy Bay's founding winemaker, Kevin Judd, has resigned to build up his own label, Greywacke, and pursue his interest in wine photography (mostly recently on display in an affectionate, amusing new book, Wine Dogs New Zealand).   

When Kevin arrived in Marlborough in 1985 to take up the job, no fanfare greeted him. "We had no vineyards, no winery, no equipment, nothing," he recalls. "Things could only get better." Cloudy Bay's strikingly aromatic, beautifully packaged 1985 sauvignon blanc (based on grapes bought from Corbans) swiftly won international acclaim. 

A lean, 49-year-old, Kevin was Cloudy Bay's managing director until recently, with Eveline Fraser effectively the winemaker, although Kevin still headed the production team. Eveline, a former brewer who joined the Cloudy Bay team in 2001 after eight years making wine in Australia, France and Marlborough, will continue in the role of senior winemaker.