Murdoch James Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2015
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Wine Spectator
Lime, melon and pear flavors have a fresh green edge, with notes of lemongrass and parsley that linger on the juicy finish.
Murdoch James Estate vineyards enjoy premium grape growing soil conditions with a mixture of calciferous lime, clay and river silts with a high mineral content. The action of the Australian tectonic plate, scraping the bed of the Pacific plate millions of years ago, gave rise to the limestone rich hills of the High Block Vineyard of Murdoch James Estate, Martinborough. The lime and clay based soils of the vineyard allows white wines a vibrant fruit flavor with a long, lingering, mineral finish, and red wines of complexity and character. True to their terroir, the wines of Murdoch James Martinborough are rich in flavor and elegant in structure.
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.
Part of the Wairarapa region in the southern end of the country’s North Island, Martinborough is a bucolic appellation full of artisan, lifestyle wine producers. Above all else, their goals are to tend vineyards for low yields and create wines of supreme quality. Pinot noir is the main grape variety here, occupying over half of the land under vine.
Comparing topography, climate and soils, the region is nearly identical to Marlborough except that it produces top quality reds on the regular.