Box O' Birds Sauvignon Blanc 2014
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Mild notes of tomato leaf accent this wine's refreshing white-grapefruit aromas and flavors. It's medium in body and dry, finishing long and elegant.
The growers are using organic mulch to help conserve water and reduce pesticides into the aquifer, and in winter they grow cover crops that are then cultivated into the soil to replace valuable nitrates that the vines take out during the growing season. In the winery, Box o’ Birds not only has a full recycling program, but they also use recycled cardboard for all their packing and the maximum amount of recycled glass in their bottles while still maintaining the bottles integrity. On top of this, they are also reducing their CO2 emissions by recycling fermentation-produced CO2 to purge empty tanks.
The label for these tasty bottlings is pure “kiwi”. Box O’ Birds is a New Zealand colloquialism that is spoken in answer to the daily question “How are you?” Its meaning signifies that the speaker is cheerful, happy, and in good health, the feeling that they hope each sip will bring. Enjoy.
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.