Daniel Schuster Sauvignon Blanc 2007
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Our style of cool climate Sauvignon blanc achieves a complete, well defi ned expression of the variety, region and its vintage year. It combines the purity of New Zealand fruit fl avors with the traditional dry style European concepts of classical, seafood wine structure.
The winery is located in the fast emerging wine producing district of Waipara in North Canterbury and our wines are produced entirely from grapes grown on our two estate managed vineyards; Omihi Hills Vineyard in Waipara and Petrie Vineyard in Rakaia, Mid Canterbury.
The unique environments of our Estate vineyards are ideally suited for the production of premium quality wine from Pinot noir and Chardonnay grapes. Wines under the regional "Canterbury" label are made in a supple style for earlier drinking while the "Selection" wines are made in only the best vintages to genuinely reflect our special terroir and are structured to reward longer term cellaring.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.
An icon and leading region of New Zealand's distinctive style of Sauvignon blanc, Marlborough has a unique terroir, making it ideal for high quality grape production (of many varieties). Despite some common generalizations, which could be fairly justified given that Marlborough is responsible for 90% of New Zealand's Sauvignon blanc production, the wines from this region are actually anything but homogenous. At the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, the vineyards of Marlborough benefit from well-draining, stony soils, a dry, sunny climate and wide temperature fluctuations between day and night, a phenomenon that supports a perfect balance between berry ripeness and acidity.
The region’s king variety, Sauvignon blanc, is beloved for its pungent, aromatic character with notes of exotic tropical fruit, freshly cut grass and green bell pepper along with a refreshing streak of stony minerality. These wines are made in a wide range of styles, and winemakers take advantage of various clones, vineyard sites, fermentation styles, lees-stirring and aging regimens to differentiate their bottlings, one from one another.
Also produced successfully here are fruit-forward Pinot noirs (especially where soils are clay-rich), elegant Riesling, Pinot gris and Gewürztraminer.