I missed the opportunity to comment when the subject was raised in a different thread within the past week or so, but I did want to make a couple of points.
Whether one wanted to use the French expression "terrior" when one considered the unique Sauvignons coming out of Marlborough is a moot point.
It is commonly accepted that no other wine region produces the pungent, assertive, brightly fruited SBs that New Zealand (in general) and Marlborough (in particular) turns out.
Consider this: the unique pungency associated with Marlborough Sauvignon comes from miniscule quantities of the compound *methoxypyrazine*, which is present (undesirable so!) in other varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon for one!
Marlborough has several very unique geological, meteorological and climatic assets which together make this one of the very few places which make this distinctive style, each contributing to the levels of methoxypyrazine (mpz - my abbreviation!) present.
When visiting several vineyard/wineries, Mark Lipton, Ian Hoare and I were told - "In Marlborough, SB grows like a weed!"
Generally, when we refer to Marlborough, we are talking about the Wairau Valley; where the river has meandered for hundreds of years, bring shingle (rocks) from the mountains, and depositing them on the plains, covered with a few cm of alluvial topsoil.
Three to four metres below the surface there is copious quantities of fresh water - after a few years the vines are "self irrigated"
Sauvignon Blanc is a vigorous vine that when left unchecked will produce a huge canopy of leaves and a prodigious crop. This exuberance equates to overtly vegetal wines that smell and taste of canned asparagus juice.
In Marlborough, growers use low-vigor rootstock and plant in well-draining, low-fertility, rocky alluvial soils to discourage rampant growth.
Growers remove much excessive leaf growth to allow optimum light levels and wind to flow through the vines.
You see, over-ripening will cause mpz levels to drop too low, thus producing wines lacking that aggressive pungency associated with the wines.
Another major factor is also the quite wide diurnal temperature range - maximums during the day seldom above 27/28 degr C - falling to 6/8 degr C at night.
Careful viticultural practices (leaf plucking) attention to detail to ensure picking is done just at the right time, and viola - making SB NZ style is easy stuff - crush, press, filter, ferment, add a little Semillon (some vineyards do!); perhaps a little in older oak (again, some do!) bottle and four months later more of the same.
So, would you call this "terrior" - the uniqueness of a region with low soil fertility but lots of natural water; generally cool climate, tempered by regular sea breezes and "cold" nights?
I think so.