A vibrant, textural, food-friendly style of sauvignon blanc thanks to Martinborough’s naturally low yields, hand- icked, hand-sorted fruit, partial barrel ferment and extended contact with yeast lees in both tank and barrel. Refined aromas and flavours of passionfruit and lemon grass align with hints of gooseberry, honeysuckle, ginger and ruby grapefruit to provide a mouth-filling medley of pleasure! This wine is all class; rich and finely balanced, with great length on the palate.
Ata Rangi
Ata Rangi is owned and run by Clive Paton and his wife Phyll, together with Clive’s sister Alison and winemaker Helen Masters. Clive planted the bare, stony home paddock at the edge of Martinborough in 1980 and, in doing so, was one of a handful of people who pioneered grape growing in the area. Ata Rangi’s first vineyard covered less than five hectares of thin, well-drained alluvial soil. They are now according to UK winewriter Tim Atkin, ’widely regarded as New Zealand’s top Pinot.. read more
eRobertParker.com #197. Oct 2011. Reviewer : Lisa Perrotti-Brown. 20% barrel fermented with lees stirring, the 2010 Sauvignon Blanc presents aromas of fresh apple and grapefruit juice with hints of capsicum, chopped herbs and crushed stones. Medium bodied with very good flavor concentration and racy acidity, it gives a long herbal and citrus laced finish. Drinking now, it should remain fresh through 2013.
Sept/Oct '11. By Stephen Tanzer. Very pale greenish-yellow color. Piquant aromas of gooseberry, lemon, grapefruit rind and pepper, complicated by green tropical fruits and lemongrass. Dense, supple and ripe, with citrus and stone fruit flavors lifted by fresh herbs and pepper and a touch of barrel spice. Offers a nice balance of weight and dusty energy, and clings nicely on the aftertaste.
A restrained, sophisticated and quite complex Sauvingon Blanc with a subtle influence of barrel fermentation that slightly dampens fruit flavour but adds an extra dimension to the wine. After an initial hint of sweetness the wine appears to be bone-dry but certainly not austere. A stylish statement from one of New Zealand's leading winemakers.
There's a wealth of elderflowery sauvignon character here, some gentle stone fruits too, and a grassy thread. The palate's tangy, concentrated and open-hearthed: bright green mango and papaya fruits, and acid crunch through to the finish.
A consistently attractive wine, with ripe tropical-fruit rather than grassy, herbaceous flavours. The outstanding 2011 vintage (5*) was hand-picked and mostly handled in tanks, but a small portion (about 10 per cent) of the blend was fermented and lees-aged in seasoned French oak barrels. The bouquet is aromatic and complex; the palate weighty and lively, with cool-climate zestiness and concentrated melon/lime flavours, fresh, crisp, dry and long. It's a very distinctive and harmonious wine, full of personality.
Bright straw-yellow colour with lemon-green hues, this has a fine, bright and intense nose of mineral infused gooseberries, mint, white florals along with very subtle smoke and barrel-ferment notes. Dry and elegantly proportioned, restrained citrus, gooseberry and nectarine fruit flavours are complexed by delicate toasty barrel nuances. While fresh and lively, the mouthfeel has a gentle creaminess to the texture which leads to a sustained finish of lime fruit, nuts and spices. Fruit from 5 blocks, some given limited skin contact, cool-fermented in stainless-steel, with 20% in 3 y.o. oak to 13.5% alc., the BF portion aged on lees. This is an elegant and refreshing Sauvignon Blanc with subtle barrel work adding delicate complexities and textures. Match with seafood, poultry and creamy cheeses over the next 2-3+ years.
Fruit hand-picked and crushed with around half given a few hours of cold soak skincontact before draining and pressing. 10% fermented in 3 year old oak, 90% in stainless steel. Inoculated and fermented in controlled temperature storage at 12-18oC.
