Down to Earth Sauvignon Blanc 2017

Down to Earth Sauvignon Blanc 2017

  08:30    Stu.

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Subtlety could almost be the watchword here. For a variety known for its nigh boisterous and overt aromatic, Xavier Bizot has teased out a wine that's balance and neatness personified.

There's gentle texture, more phenolic derived than weight, that just carries the wine as it slowly ebbs across the palate. Moderate acidity, again it's more about the length and carry of flavour here. Exceptional winemaking. 92

Tasted on: Sunday 5th August
Source: Sample
Price: $26
Alcohol: 13.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: https://terreaterre.com.au/

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Yealands Estate Land Made Sauvignon Blanc 2017

Yealands Estate Land Made Sauvignon Blanc 2017

  09:36    Stu.

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Quite unsure as to what 'Land Made' means in the context of the wine, still it's attractively packaged.

Presents itself well, somewhat more delicate on the aromatic profile. It's all tropical fruit ahoy! Mixing guava, papaya and suggestion of citrus thrown in for freshness.

Palate shows the freshness, cut and acidity of the variety - giving drive and verve. Well made. 91

Tasted on: Sunday 5th August
Source: Sample
Price: $
Alcohol: 12.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: https://www.yealands.co.nz/

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Babydoll Sauvignon Blanc 2017

Babydoll Sauvignon Blanc 2017

  09:26    Stu.

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Classically proportioned New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. It's all fresh, up front, carrying that that Gooseberry and herbal opening that has come to define a style (rightly or wrongly) and certainly launched a nation's wine industry.

Clean, crisp, good line of acid that extends well into the furthest reaches. There's that lingering grapefruit acidity cut with with some zesty lemon. 90

Tasted on: Sunday 5th August
Source: Sample
Price: $17.99 (NZ?)
Alcohol: 12.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: www.babydollwines.co.nz

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Ferngrove Black Label Malbec 2016

Ferngrove Black Label Malbec 2016

  09:18    Stu.

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Deep purple (smoke on the water...) fruit here, like a Plum or Mulberry jam, almost straddling the blue spectrum.

Fruit carries through, a list dusting of spice. Fine, powdery tannin coats the mouth here - persistent in their presence and character. 

Brings - and leaves - more of a savoury mien about it, a pleasant contrast to the initial fruit foray. 88 

Tasted on: Wednesday 1st August, a Flower to Leaf day 
Source: Sample
Price: $20
Alcohol: 14%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: www.ferngrove.com.au

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Margan Hunter and Bramble 2018

Margan Hunter and Bramble 2018

  15:30    Stu.

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Hunter Rosé made from Barbera and Merlot.

Carries an air of delicate red fruit, with hints of rose petal and a musky touch. 

The palate shows sweeter fruit presence than I was expecting, without the cloying aspect. There's a little body, not the textural weight or width that often - for mine - accompanies the sugar. 

It carries itself well, a gentle cascading length. But I was somewhat disarmed by the fruit presence. Not a personal preference, but a well made wine. 88 

Tasted on: Friday 27th July, a Fruit to Root day 
Source: Sample
Price: $25
Alcohol: 13%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: https://www.margan.com.au/

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Montalto Red Hill Block Pinot Noir 2016

Montalto Red Hill Block Pinot Noir 2016

  08:30    Stu.

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From a site 110m above sea level, on the ocean side of the peninsula.

Initially on opening fresh I detected what I thought was the presence of oak. That, if it was indeed there, soon gave way to something else entirely with sour cherry and plum at the core. 

It seemed something of a shape shifter, Pinot Noir with more of that piney Pinosity - the earth and forest floor. The fruit is certainly more persistent - and prominent - on the palate, yet it is this fine minerality that pervades and persists, with an refreshening acid line. 

Two from two, the Montalto 2016 single vineyard Pinot Noir releases are looking very fine. 93

Tasted on: Friday 27th July, a Fruit to Root day
Source: Sample
Price: $70
Alcohol: 13.8%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: https://montalto.com.au/

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Out of Step Wine Co Willowlake Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2017

Out of Step Wine Co Willowlake Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2017

  21:01    Stu.

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I'm not going to shy away from the fact that this is a complex and challenging wine that, for me, defied conventional interpretation. Certainly aromatically. 

The palate has this cascading fluidity, nigh on slippery in the way it glides across the palate with ease. It's over-riding sense is of struck flint, as you might get as a kid, banging two stones together to reveal a flinty edge. 

It's long, generous - and at the same time graceful, even with its hard edge. Sauvignon Blanc re-interpreted. 93

Tasted on: Tuesday 24th July, a Leaf to Fruit day

Source: Sample
Price: $30
Alcohol: 12.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: http://www.outofstepwineco.com/

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