Winemaker Notes
Organic, small batch, wild ferment, single vineyard Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough. Soils are a mix of silt, clays and some river gravels giving the wine freshness and structure. Fermented with indigenous yeasts in a mix of stainless steel (65%) and old 500L barrels (35%) with half the wine going through malolactic fermentation. The goal here is to ‘turn the volume down’ and create a Sauvignon Blanc that is fuller and richer than the typical Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of passion-fruit curd, orange blossoms and fresh pineapple. The palate is light-bodied with vibrant acidity, giving notes of gooseberries, lychees and flint. Nicely constructed.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2023 Blanc comprises a blend of 40% Sauvignon Blanc, 37% Pinot Noir and 23% Chardonnay. Aromatically, the wine leads with pressed linen, white peach, dried roses, paper and lemon pith. The wine is textural, sedate and almost muted, with chewy phenolics and a pleasant, lingering aftertaste. There's quite a bit to like here; it's an unusual wine for the most part, yet I like it. It's a clever composition of the three star grape varieties of Marlborough. 12.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
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.