2015 TWR (Te Whare Ra) SV5182 Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough

95SK

94JS

92BC

91-92RC

91RP

$24.99

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Sam Kim

A magnificent rendition of the variety; home-grown, low-cropped grapes were hand picked and hand sorted, and fermented predominantly in large seasoned oak vats, then matured on fine lees. The wine is subtle yet persistent, elegant yet powerful, exhibiting engaging aromas of white stone fruit, lemon peel, sweet basil, hay and a hint of oatmeal on the nose. The palate is concentrated and focused, and offers layers of fine texture and silky mouthfeel, brilliantly framed by seamlessly integrated acidity, leading to an extremely long, sustained finish. This is one of those rare sauvignons that can be cellared, and will improve with bottle age, gaining weight, texture and complexity. At its best: now to 2025. 150 dozen made. Certified organic.

Professional Reviews

James Suckling

Review Date: 11/2017

A benchmark for barrel-fermented Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. This gathers subtle aromatic and palate complexity and takes nothing away from the strong, pure lime and green passion fruit that underpins the wine. Striking purity. Drink now.

Bob Campbell

A rich, textural sauvignon blanc, with extra weight and complexity achieved by barrel-fermenting 75% of the juice. Capsicum, melon and passionfruit flavours, with a seasoning of nutty oak and yeast lees character and a subtle struck flint reductive character.

91-

Raymond Chan

Bright, pale straw-yellow colour with slight green hues, very light on the rim. This has a very finely proportioned and presented nose with elegantly concentrated aromas of green stonefruits, greengages and gooseberries, along with piquant, aromatic herbal elements. The nose has stylish intensity and penetration, unveiling hints of tropical fruits, smoke and steely minerals. Dry to taste and medium-bodied, this has a tightly bound core of greengages, green stonefruits and gooseberries, the fruit lifted by aromatic herbs and white florals, and detailed by flint, smoke and mineral nuances. The mouthfeel is refined and poised with fresh, lacy acidity and a very fine textural thread providing a guiding line, leading to an elegant, lingering finish of green stonefruits and minerals. This is an elegant and tightly bound, oak-influenced Sauvignon Blanc with green stonefruit, herb and mineral flavours on a poised and refined palate. Serve with herb-marinated seafood and poultry dished and Mediterranean fare over the next 3+ years. The first release of a Sauvignon Blanc under the ‘SV 5182’ label. Hand-picked and sorted fruit from the ‘Home’ block, 75% warm-fermented in seasoned French demi-muids and 25% in tank to 13.1% alc. and dryness, the wine aged 10 months on lees with some batonnage, and no MLF. Certified BioGro organic. 164 cases made.

Staff Reviews

Ryan Woodhouse

A wine that was many years in the making. Talking with owners / winemakers Jason and Anna Flowerday about this wine was very revealing. For many years they have flirted with the idea of making a single block, barrel influenced Sauv Blanc from their home block of vines. They have repeatedly kept a small parcel separate and fermented it in a large 600L neutral French oak Puncheon barrel...but year after year they ended up blending it into the TWR "regular" Sauvignon Blanc bottling. However - in 2015 the wine quality, their confidence and the fruition of the "SV5182" program (a marker that distinguishes their BioGro organic certified estate wines from a couple wines that included growers fruit) meant that this experimental wine finally made it to bottle as a singular expression...and boy was it worth the wait! This is next level stuff. This wine was ultimately conceived in the vineyard; the rows selected for this endeavor are set up from the very beginning with this expression in mind. Super low yielding, hand tended vines mean concentrated fruit with depth and texture. The influence of the barrel is purely for lees contact and oxygen rather than any noticeable oak flavor. The wine has amazing purity, layers of texture, intense minerality and a persistence of flavor intensity that elevates it above it's multitude of Marlborough counterparts. I suspect it will age beautifully as well...certainly putting a case in my cellar to find out!

Notes

Winemaker's Notes: "This is our inaugural release of a Sauvignon Blanc under our SV5182 designation. We feel that this 2015 release showcases the best expression of our site here at Te Whare Ra and the stellar quality of the 2015 vintage in Marlborough. This wine is the culmination of a 5 year project we have been pursuing with Sauvignon Blanc from our TWR home block. This wine is all about fruit purity and texture which is achieved with low crops, meticulous canopy management and lots of attention to detail with fruit selection. The focus was making a wine which has great texture and fleshiness and which is characterised by lots of layers and complexity with notes of ripe tropical notes with stonefruit and citrus with a lovely line of ripe minerality. This SV5182 release shows white stonefruit and a great florality coupled with lovely ripe tropicals and hints of basil and lime. These follow through to the palate which is fine and weighty with vibrant fleshy fruit and great texture balanced by a ripe, juicy acidity and lingering minerality."

Details

Origin	New Zealand
Type/Varietal	Sauvignon Blanc
Alcohol Content	13%
SKU	1297188