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Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc

Not your typical Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc! By using a combination of barrel and cool tank fermentation, our winemakers have added complexity and interest to the varietal characteristics consumers around the world know and love. The result is an intensely flavourful wine, smooth, balanced and delicious, with flavours of golden apple, guava, lemon and a hint of toasted hazelnut.

TASTING NOTES

Rock melon and gooseberry aromas with a touch of fennel seed and honey. Complex and enticing.

Sweet fruited and lush entry - guava, pear and tropical fruits. A thread of lemon and notes of orange blossom. Well weighted and plenty of depth with a long finish, flavours of stone fruit and nutmeg linger.

After harvest the grapes were quickly crushed and de-stemmed. The juice was fermented in barrels of various capacities - from the standard 225L barrique up to 650L pipes. The wine spent a total of 9 months in barrel with frequent lees stirring. This treatment, coupled with low cropping levels, delivered body and complexity.

Partner it with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

TASTING NOTES

Great density and a lovely tight structure. Flavours of lemon curd and honey mingle with pear, mandarin and tropical fruits. Great focus -elegant and long.

After harvest the grapes were quickly crushed and de-stemmed. Most of the juice was (80%) fermented in barrels of various capacities - from the standard 225L barrique up to 650L pipes. 20% in tank. The wine spent a total of 10 months in barrel with frequent lees stirring. This treatment, coupled with low cropping levels, delivered body and complexity.

Partner it with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

TASTING NOTES

Gooseberry, quince and nectarines aromas with garden herbs and a note of toasted hazelnut. Very smooth and rounded entry that sets the tone for the entire length of the palate. Flavours of ripe gooseberry, guava and a touch of golden delicious apple. Lemon and mineral notes on the finish.

After harvest the grapes were quickly crushed and de-stemmed. The juice was 100% fermented in barrels of various capacities - from the standard 225L barrique up to 650L pipes. 20% of which was new French oak. The wine spent a total of nine months in barrel with frequent lees stirring. This treatment, coupled with low cropping levels, delivered body and complexity.

Partner it with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

94 POINTS - Cameron Douglas MS, www.camdouglasms.com

"This is a barrel-fermented style with a bouquet showcasing gooseberry and baking spices, vanilla and baked apple, peach and a touch of wood smoke. Youthful, complex and inviting. On the palate - a satin texture is immediate with a fine smooth mouthfeel then flavours of citrus and apple, peach and gooseberry layer in. Some fine tannins and medium+ acidity, herbaceous moments and a definitive complexity all lead to a lengthy finish. Balanced, well made and ready to drink from day of purchase and through 2025+." 94 POINTS - Cameron Douglas MS, www.camdouglasms.com 26 Nov 2021

TASTING NOTES

Smoky green tropical fruit aromas with rock melon, lemon and toffee apple. Pungent and complex. A smooth and sweet-fruited entry. Rich barrel ferment characters and juicy stone fruits fill out the mid-palate and fresh herbs and citrus linger on the finish. A lush wine with power and length.

After harvest the grapes were quickly crushed and de-stemmed. The juice was 100% fermented in barrels of various capacities - from the standard 225L barrique up to 650L pipes. 25% of which was new French oak. The wine spent a total of 8 months in barrel with frequent lees stirring. This treatment, coupled with low cropping levels, delivered body and complexity.

Partner it with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

TASTING NOTES

Ripe peppers, sweet pea, mandarin and guava elements mingle with more flinty notes. Complexing toffee aromas. The palate is powerful, driving and multifaceted. Rich with gooseberry, white stone fruit and displaying a savoury strength. Sweet capsicum lingers with a perception of sweetness on the dry, mineral finish.

After harvest the grapes were quickly crushed and de-stemmed. The juice was fermented predominately in seasoned French oak, 25% new, to deliver body and complexity. Both components spent 8 months on lees with frequent stirring before bottling.

Partner it with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

GOLD MEDAL - Global Sauvignon Blanc Masters 2018
SILVER MEDAL - New Zealand International Wine Show 2018
91 POINTS - James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com, Oct 2018
93 POINTS - Bob Campbell, www.therealreview.com, Oct 2018
SILVER MEDAL - New Zealand Royal Easter Show Wine Awards 2019
SILVER MEDAL - International Wine Challenge China 2019

"Oak weighing into the complexity equation here. Lightly spicy and toasty nuances with a neat, crisp, lime-curd palate and a warm, spicy finish."
91 POINTS -James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com, Oct 2018

"Rich, fleshy barrel-fermented sauvignon blanc with capsicum, gooseberry and tree fruit flavours supported by a subtle seasoning of spicy oak. An elegant and attractive wine."
93 POINTS -Bob Campbell, www.therealreview.com, Oct 2018

"Smokey, subtly complex aromas. Lightly oaked and still fruity, rounded crisp and refreshing. More complex than many!"
92 POINTS - International Wine Challenge 2019

TASTING NOTES

Barrel fermented complexity with orange-floral and mineral elements on the nose. The palate is all about texture - tightly packed yet smooth and mouth-filling - seamless. Green fruits and lime run through to the long finish.

After harvest the grapes were quickly crushed and pressed. The juice was fermented predominately in seasoned oak, to deliver body and complexity. Both components spent an extended time on lees before bottling.

Partner it with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

GOLD MEDAL - Royal Easter Show Wine Awards 2017
5 STARS - www.michaelcooper.co.nz , May 2017
5 STARS, 95 POINTS - www.bobcampbell.nz
90 POINTS - Jo Czerwinski, Wine Advocate, Feb 2018

"A stylish example of gently oak-influenced Sauvignon Blanc. Estate-grown in the Cowslip Valley vineyard, in the Waihopai Valley, the impressive 2016 vintage (5*) was partly handled in tanks, but most of the blend was fermented and lees-aged for six months in seasoned French oak barriques. Instantly appealing, it is still youthful, with mouthfilling body and concentrated, ripe, tropical fruit flavours, showing excellent freshness and complexity . Finely textured, with moderate acidity and a dry (1.6 grams/litre residual sugar), harmonious finish."
5 STARS -Michael Cooper, www.michaelcooper.co.nz, May 2017

"Bright, even, light straw-yellow colour with slight pale-gold hues.  The nose is fresh and very tightly bound with intensely penetrating aromas of green stone-fruits greengages and gooseberries interwoven with a subtle layer of nuts, fresh herbs and chalky minerals.  Dry to taste and medium-bodied, the palate is elegantly concentrated with a firm, intense core of green stone-fruits and gooseberries, entwined with notes of fresh herbs and chalky minerals.  The fruit is vibrant and enlivened by lacy acidity, and the wine flows along a refined, taut line with fine textures, leading to a long, lingering finish of green stone-fruits and spicy blackcurrant leaf.  This is a taut and intensely concentrated oak-influenced Sauvignon Blanc with green stone-fruit flavours along with herb and minerally nuances."
-Raymond Chan, www.raymondchanwinereviews.co.nz, April 2017

"Very attractive Sauvignon Blanc, which throws into sharp relief exactly how challenging the 2017 vintage was (the wine was tasted against mostly 2017 Sauvignon). A richly-textural wine with tree fruit, spice, melon and honeysuckle flavours. A pleasure to taste."
5 STARS 95 POINTS -Bob Campbell, www.bobcampbell.nz

"The 2016 Winemakers' Reserve Sauvignon Blanc carries a significant barrel-ferment component and spent five months in used and new French oak of various sizes. It's toasty, cedary and mealy, even showing a bit of buttery richness from the 40% of the blend that went through malolactic fermentation. Nectarine and grapefruit notes balance out the oak and round out the mid-palate of this medium to full-bodied wine, then turn more citrusy on the finish."
90 POINTS Jo Czerwinski, Wine Advocate, Feb 2018

TASTING NOTES

Barrel fermented complexity with orange-floral and mineral elements on the nose. The palate is all about texture - tightly packed yet smooth and mouth-filling - seamless. Green fruits and lime run through to the long finish.

After harvest at our Marlborough vineyard, the grapes were quickly crushed and pressed. The juice was fermented predominately in seasoned oak, to deliver body and complexity. Both components spent an extended time on lees before bottling.

Partner this award-winning Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with crumbed chicken breasts dabbed with mustard-cream sauce, or with baked salmon, smeared with salsa verde (puréed mint, parsley and capers).

TROPHY - New Zealand Wine of the Year - China Wines & Spirits Awards 2016
DOUBLE GOLD - China Wines & Spirits Awards 2016

"Estate fruit from the Waihopai Valley, 60% oak-fermented, 10% being new, and 40% tank fermented to 13.0% alc. and 3.1 g/L RS, the wine given extended lees aging. Brilliant, light straw-yellow colour with light lemon-green hues, pale edged. The nose is slender in proportion with well-concentrated aromas of green stone-fruits, greengages and nectarines, tightly bound with grassy and tropical fruit notes, along with subtle nutty oak and flinty lees suggestions. This is taut and promises to blossom with some time in bottle. Dry to taste and medium-bodied, the palate is well packed and softly concentrated with lively and luscious flavours of spicy green stone-fruits, cut grass and lantana, detailed with very subtle and integrated lees and oak inputs. The mouthfeel balances a smooth, near creamy barrel-ferment textures with lively acidity. This has a positive core and line, with the flavours receding as the wine leads to a fine, smooth-textured, lingering finish. This is a finely concentrated, luscious and subtly complex oak-influenced Sauvignon Blanc still to unfold."
4 STARS -Raymond Chan, www.raymondchanwinerviews.co.nz, Jan 2016

"A stylish example of gently oaked Sauvignon Blanc. Estate-grown in the Waihopai and Awatere valleys, it is mostly handled in tanks, but part of the blend (20 per cent in 2015) is fermented and lees-aged in French oak barriques. The 2015 vintage is mouthfilling and smooth, with strong, ripe tropical-fruit flavours to the fore, nutty and creamy notes adding richness and complexity, and a dry, finely textured finish. It shows good potential; open mid-2017+"
4 STARS -Michael Cooper, Michael Cooper's 2017 Buyers Guide

"The 2015 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc gives notes of preserved lemons, dried Mediterranean herbs, curry leaves, and coriander seed with a touch of capsicum. Showing some evolution in the mouth, it is a medium-bodied savory/vegetal style with plenty of character and vivacity plus good length."
-Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Advocate, June 2017