Winemaker Notes
Imagine a summer fruit salad of honeydew melon and ripe, golden quinces – drizzled with citrus flower water and a squeeze of orange skin oil. A delicious floral fragrance and juicy tropical fruit, infused with a fennel-like herbal thread and a
faint whiff of wood smoke. Fermented entirely with naturally occurring yeast, this is an alternative style of sauvignon blanc that is both intricate and textural, with a rich, succulent palate finishing crisp and long with a flinty dryness.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A very attractive nose of lemon sherbet, rosemary, fresh thyme and grated nutmeg. Medium-bodied and silky. So fresh and seamless on the palate with subtle tannins. Chamomile and wet stone. Subtle, nuanced and delicious. An elegant sauvignon blanc. Drink or hold.
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Wine Enthusiast
Indigenous yeast and old oak barrels add a richness and complexity to this Sauvignon. It's pale straw in color, with a reductive notes of nuts, charred toast and lemon pith, the grass and herbal notes taking a back seat. The palate is ready in texture, buoyed by crystalline acidity. There's length, balance and a long lemony finish. A solid pairing with rich, herb-flecked dishes.
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.