Established in 1985 by David Hohnen, Cloudy Bay is one of the top 5 Marlborough wineries in New Zealand, a region that in less than 30 years has become the most renowned in the world for New Zealand wines.

The Cloudy Bay estate takes its name from the one given to this coast by the explorer James Cook during his voyage to New Zealand in 1770. At that time, heavy floods precipitated a large amount of sediment into the sea and gave it an opaque appearance.

Cloudy Bay is located in the northern part of New Zealand's South Island, an area crossed by the Wairau River along the Richmond Ranges and stretching from Mount Riley at 1800 metres in the north to the coast at Cloudy Bay in the south. The 4 vineyards benefit from a cool maritime climate and soils composed of glacial sediments, alluvium, stones and clay:
- Cloudy Bay Estate was born in 1986 and was replanted in 1992 after the arrival of Phylloxera in Marlborough, almost exclusively in Sauvignon Blanc with a little Chardonnay.
- Widow's Block Vineyard takes its name from the original owner, Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin and was born in 1998, planted mostly in Sauvignon Blanc with some Pinot Noir.
- Mustang Vineyard is located in the Brancott Valley. Born in 1994, its heavier soils are perfectly suited to Pinot Noir which, along with Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and a few German grape varieties (Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris), make up most of the grape varieties planted.
- Barracks Block is a vineyard born in 2004, planted entirely with Pinot Noir, on gentle slopes facing north. The first harvest took place in 2007.