Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Barrel-fermented character and complex aromas of beeswax, limes and preserved lemons lead to a palate that has assertive acidity cut and a juicy, vibrant and lively, fresh finish.
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Wine Spectator
Distinctive and complex. Honeysuckle, beeswax and candied ginger notes add complexity to the pear, yuzu and tangerine flavors at the core. Spicy and crisp on the finish. Shows impressive harmony and intensity.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Cloudy Bay's 2016 Te Koko Sauvignon Blanc is marked by scents of pencil shavings and citrus fruit on the nose, while the medium-bodied palate features a silky texture allied to bright acidity that calls to mind certain well-made Pessac-Léognan whites. Rather taut and linear, it could use another year or two to settle down, although it will likely never be as opulent or generous as the wonderful 2015.
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Wine & Spirits
Jim White blends this wine from six vineyards, the fruit hand-harvested from three subzones—Rapaura, Renwick and Brancott. He allows it to ferment spontaneously and slowly in French oak barrels (eight percent of them new), where it then rests for 15 months. As the wine opens in the glass, it displays creamy richness and saturated passion-fruit flavors, smoky lees scents and an almost searing limelike acidity. Still young, this will benefit from several years of bottle age.
Cloudy Bay Vineyards, established in 1985, is today a partnership between champagne house Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin and co-founder of Cape Mentelle Vineyards in Western Australia, David Hohnen. The Cloudy Bay team is committed to producing 'wines of region' and strives to enhance the pure, bracing flavors naturally afforded by the climate and soils of Marlborough. The winery and vineyards are situated in the Wairau Valley in Marlborough at the northern end of New Zealand's South Island. This unique and cool wine region enjoys a maritime climate with the longest hours of sunshine of any place in New Zealand. Cloudy Bay has estate vineyards located at prime sites within the Wairau Valley and long-term supply agreements with five Wairau Valley growers. The main varieties grown are Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
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.