More than 550 wines will go before the judges this week as tasting for the 2026 Marlborough Wine Show gets underway.
From Wednesday 21 to Friday 23 October, Chief Judge Stu Marfell will be joined by Shadow Chief Judge Murray Cook to lead a team of ten senior judges and six associate judges, including guest judges Jennifer Docherty MW from Hong Kong and long time international wine judge Terry Copeland, through the tasting.
"We're lucky to have two guest judges who bring real breadth to the table," Stu says. "Jennifer has a truly global palate and a sharp sense of how Marlborough wines sit on the international stage, and Terry has been judging here and overseas for more than 30 years.
‘Their perspective alongside the deep local knowledge of our panel is exactly the balance a regional show needs."
Jennifer Docherty is one of around 420 Masters of Wine worldwide, and the first ethnically Chinese and Mandarin-speaking MW.
Based in Hong Kong, she has spent more than 16 years as a wine buyer and educator across the UK, Hong Kong and mainland China. She now works as an educator, a judge and a wine communicator, and has chaired a judging panel at the IWC Sake Competition in London for a decade.
Terry Copeland has judged wine competitions for more than three decades, in New Zealand and in London, San Francisco, Sydney and Tokyo.
After a career in wine sales, marketing, export and supply chain, he went on to lead NZ Young Farmers and Federated Farmers, and is now Programme Director, Export Growth at the Ministry for Primary Industries.
Entries cover the full range of Marlborough wine styles, with growth in several classes this year. Sweet wine entries have almost doubled, the Sauvignon Blanc aged one year or older category is up, as is the current vintage regional blend Pinot Noir.
"It's great to see more aged Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir coming through," Stu says. "These styles work to showcase the depth and breadth Marlborough has to offer, as well as the confidence producers have in how their wines develop over time.”
The Legacy Trophy, which awards the wine with the highest scores for three vintages within a ten-year period, and is consistently and increasingly well supported, was set to be judged solely by the Chief Judges and Guest Judges.
QuayConnect is once again the show's naming sponsor. General Manager Jaron McLeod says the company is proud to continue its support.
"Marlborough wine is one of the Top of the South's great export stories, and much of it moves through our supply chain on its way to the world," he says.
"Backing a show that recognises the skill and care that goes into every bottle is a natural fit for QuayConnect."
Entrants will be notified of medal results on Thursday 29 October, with trophy winners announced at the Marlborough Wine Show Celebration on Friday 13 November 2026