Winemaker Notes
Expressive aromas of feijoa, lime zest and rock melon fuse beautifully with a palate featuring a mouth-watering fresh acidity and lime and green apple flavors. An elegant expression of Sauvignon Blanc where vibrant aromatics and great purity of flavor combine with a distinctive minerality and fine palate texture.
Vegan-friendly
Professional Ratings
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The Somm Journal
Iconic aromas of gooseberry, along with thyme and unripened banana. Tart, with shiny flavors of green tea, yellow apple, and a flinty middle. Extroverted acidity cheers on the flavors through to the stunning finish.
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James Suckling
Aromas of Asian pears, kiwis, papayas and lime zest. The palate is light-bodied with bright acidity and a citrus finish. Focused and pure.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2024 Sauvignon Blanc is crunchy, lean and herbaceous, with white pineapple, quinine-like freshness in the mouth and a splay of chalky phenolics. Unsurprisingly, it doesn't have the rambunctiously tropical fruit profile of the Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs I am immersed in today, but this comes as quite a welcome change-up to programming. This is an elegant, persistent wine. 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.
Home to the globe’s most southerly vineyards, which are cultivated below the 45th parallel, Central Otago is a true one-of-a-kind wine growing region, but not only because of its extreme location.
Central Otago is more dependent on one single variety than any other region in New Zealand—and it isn’t Sauvignon blanc. They don’t even make Sauvignon blanc there.
Pinot Noir claims nearly 75% of the region’s vineyards with Pinot Gris coming in a far second place and Riesling behind it. This is also New Zealand’s only wine region with a continental climate, giving it more diurnal and seasonal temperature shifts than any other.
The subregion of Bannockburn has enjoyed the most success historically but the area’s exceptional growth has moved to the promising regions of Cromwell/Bendigo and Alexandra districts. Central Otago is known for its fruity and full-bodied Pinot noir. With the freedom to experiment here, growers and winemakers are easily exhibiting the area’s great potential.