White Wine Spy Valley Satellite Sauvignon Blanc 2021. The intriguing name of Spy Valley winery refers to the fact that it’s situated just up the road from a top secret US listening post. It’s also one of the few boutique wineries in Marlborough that is still in the hands of the original founding family, the Johnsons, who first planted vines here in 1993. These days they have some 380 acres under vine on the terraced southern slopes of the Lower Waihopai where conditions are ideal for making exceptional Sauvignon Blanc. This easy-going Sauvignon is a great introduction to the Spy Valley house style with plenty of freshness balanced by bright and vibrant fruit. The grapes for this bottling are carefully selected from estate plots to maintain consistency from vintage to vintage. The Johnsons focus on low yielding vines and ensuring that the fruit is fully ripe before harvesting to give the wine a bit more structure than other New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. Expect plenty of fruit on the nose and palate with bold notes of pink grapefruit, tropical fruit like mango and passionfruit, and some more delicate herbal notes which linger on the tongue. Overall the ripe fruit is perfectly matched by the mouthwatering acidity, culminating in a pure and clean finish which makes this white an ideal aperitif or cooling poolside drink.
2021
White Wine Spy Valley Satellite Sauvignon Blanc 2021
White Wine Summerhouse Sauvignon Blanc 2021. Rapaura Springs is a family-owned winery, based in the Wairau Valley area of New Zealand’s famous Marlborough region. They work with several partner growers, including Summerhouse, a brand under the same ownership as Rapaura Springs. The owners are the Neylons and the Wiffins, two families that formed an alliance in the 1980s and started a grapevine nursery on some premium land – ultimately leading to some of the finest wines to ever come out of Marlborough. The winery has enjoyed considerable success, winning awards for its Sauvignon Blancs. The Bordeaux grape thrives in the dry heat of Marlborough, an area that Maori refer to as the place with the hole in the cloud”. Summerhouse grapes are sourced from vineyards in Blind River, an area dried out even further by cool ocean breezes. The Summerhouse Sauvignon Blanc is packed with scents of tropical fruit and refreshing lime-edged citrus. New Zealand’s Sauvignon Blanc is notable for the intensity of its flavours, and this expression is a prime example of that. In the mouth, it is light to medium-bodied, with notes of lychee, cantaloupe, ripe citrus fruits, and lemongrass. The finish is long and clean, with a lingering herbaceousness. Well paired with seafood characteristic of the region, such as buttery clams or white fish with lemongrass.
2021
White Wine Te Pa Sauvignon Blanc 2021. The founder of Te Pa winery, Haysley MacDonald, can trace his roots back 800 years to early Maori settlers who came to live on Wairau Bar in modern-day Marlborough. Although his family have worked this land for generations, it was only in 2003 that Haysley began to convert the family’s dairy and grain farm to vineyards. Today the estate has some 500 acres under vine on Wairau Bar and in the Awatere Valley. The fruit for this classic-style Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is harvested at optimal ripeness and transported straight to the winery to preserve freshness and aromatics. The next step is to gently press the fruit and ferment the juice in stainless steel tanks to showcase the beauty and purity of the Marlborough terroir and the natural varietal character. Enticing aromatics of lime, white flowers, vanilla spice and zingy nectarine immediately burst out of the glass while the first sip reveals a mouthwatering freshness and well-rounded finish with lingering notes of citrus, pineapple, salty minerality and fresh herbs. The vibrant and refreshing flavour profile makes this a great white to pair with leafy summer salads or creamy goat cheeses.
2021