Winemaker Notes
Blend: 100% Sauvignon Blanc
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is pungent, sure, but not in a Band Aid-y way. There's some struck match characters but they're padded into the waxy citrus, stone fruit and summer veg garden aromas. This producer is a master of texture, as demonstrated here by the creamy mouthfeel, with a citrus pith and herbal through line and a great crunch of acidity that makes this a food friendly drop.
Best Buy -
James Suckling
Aromas of lemon confit, passion-fruit curd and grilled pineapple. The palate is light-bodied with fine acidity, giving notes of gooseberries, blueberry bush and guavas. Polished and pure. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2024 Sauvignon Blanc is restrained, classy and detailed, with cassis, juniper, quinine, white pineapple and green apple skin. It's classy to the end. It has soft acidity but enough to keep it feeling fresh and good. Recommended.
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Wine Spectator
Lemon thyme, basil and fresh lemon-lime flavors, plus a touch of pomelo, are harmonious and plump on a juicy frame. Notes of peach and candied ginger linger on the finish. Drink now. 28,000 cases made, 17,000 cases imported.
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.