Whitehaven Senior Winemaker Diana Katardzhieva has been named ‘Best Woman Winemaker’ for still white wines at the prestigious 2025 Sakura Women’s Wine Awards. Both the 2024 Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc and 2023 Chardonnay were awarded the top accolade of Diamond Trophy.
This prestigious competition celebrates wines that exemplify quality, and Whitehaven wines have shined brightly at this year’s tasting. Now in its 12th year, the event attracted 3,969 entries from 36 countries, judged by 430 female wine judges (280 in Tokyo and 150 in Osaka). Whitehaven has submitted wines to this competition since 2015.
However, the Whitehaven team’s greatest pride comes from seeing winemaker, Diana Katardzhieva, recognised as the Best Winemaker in the still white wines category for Whitehaven’s 2023 Chardonnay.
Diana is one of just nine female winemakers to receive this honour, and one of only two New Zealand female winemakers to make this prestigious list.Diana, who has been at Whitehaven for over 20 years, says the recognition is a shock, but “proof that years of tasting, tweaking, and the occasional barrel pep talk can pay off.”
Diana goes on to credit women in general and her wider team saying the award is a “wonderful reminder of the amazing things women are accomplishing in the wine industry. Great wine is a team effort, and I see the award as recognition not only of myself, but of the fruit quality from our vineyards and growers, and the effort of the Whitehaven team. The fact this wine is judged by a talented group of women, makes this even more special…especially since we all know women are usually the ones choosing the wine anyway!”
Diana Katardzhieva – Senior Winemaker
Diana Katardzhieva is a winemaker whose instinctive touch with the grape comes from her family heritage. A Bulgarian winemaker in New Zealand, she has generations of grape growers and winemakers before her in her homeland, said by some historians to be the birthplace of wine. But Diana also holds a Master qualification specialising in technology for microbiological and fermentation products from the University of Food Technologies in Plovdiv.
When family vineyards were restored at the end of the Communist regime in Bulgaria in the late 1980s, Diana left her medical career to study winemaking, choosing to spend the six years required for these formal science qualifications rather than simply follow the traditional methods employed in the Bulgarian countryside.
After 15 years working in Bulgaria’s wine industry Diana arrived in New Zealand. Experienced with old world vines, her first vintage in Marlborough in 2004 was a huge shift away from all she’d been accustomed to, in size and scale and the approach to wine making. But with her background, Diana is able to rely on her instinct and expertise to make exceptional and award-winning wines vintage to vintage… Continued below
In 2025 Diana was recognised as the Best Winemaker in the still white wines category for Whitehaven’s 2023 Chardonnay at the 2025 Sakura Japan Women’s Wine Awards in Japan.
Originally from Bulgaria, Diana started studying winemaking after leaving a career in medicine. Then, having successfully completed six years of study, Diana spent 15 years working in Bulgaria’s winemaking industry before departing for New Zealand with her young son.
Experienced with old world vines, Diana’s first vintage in Marlborough in 2004 was a huge shift away from all she’d been accustomed to, in terms of size and scale and the approach to wine making. Diana joined Whitehaven Wine Company initially as Lab Manager and Winemaker in 2004.
Sue White, co-founder of Whitehaven, expresses her pride in the accolade, crediting Diana for her winemaking skill and consistency in winemaking, “This level of success is a credit to Diana and her team who work hard to create wines of exceptional quality.”
Whitehaven received two Diamond Trophies, two Double Gold Medals, and a Gold Medal at the 2025 Sakura Womens’ Wine Awards this year. All Whitehaven wines are AMW and SWNZ accredited. Whitehaven first entered the Sakura Awards in 2015.