Every year at this time, keen anticipation surrounds the release of the new season’s sauvignon blancs, recently bottled and packed with tropical fruit and herbaceous aromas and flavours. From grapes picked in March and April, the wines, full of youthful zest, start trickling onto the market in June, building to a torrent during spring.
This year, predictions of notably intense wines were common in Marlborough, where almost 90% of the country’s sauvignon blanc vines are clustered. The region enjoyed a “very, very good” vintage, reported Simon Waghorn, of Astrolabe Wines. Total rainfall over the growing season was slightly below the long-term average. Waghorn’s enthusiasm reflected the long, slow ripening season, healthy vines and immaculate fruit at the harvest.
Villa Maria reported an “exceptional vintage for Marlborough sauvignon blanc. The grapes were in immaculate condition, with thick skins and crunchy acidity.” Greywacke also enthused about its sauvignon blanc, “which came in clean, with great flavours”.
Ahi Ka Blackmore Vineyard Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★★
Ahi Ka is a partnership between specialist grapegrowers and the owners of Blank Canvas. Offering impressive quality and value, this intensely varietal, youthful, single-vineyard wine was grown at Dillons Point. Light lemon/green, it is mouthfilling and vibrant, with very good weight and concentration of ripe, passionfruit/lime flavours, vague salty notes, excellent delicacy and a dry, persistent finish. $25
Anchorage Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This punchy, zingy wine is good value. Bright, light lemon/green, it is fresh, medium-bodied, with lively, ripely herbaceous, vaguely salty flavours, and a crisp, dry, lingering finish. $18
Black Cottage Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This freshly aromatic wine was grown in the lower Wairau and lower Awatere valleys, tank-fermented and aged briefly on its yeast lees. Full-bodied, it is highly varietal, with generous, ripe passionfruit and lime flavours, finely balanced acidity and a fully dry finish. (13.8% alc/vol) $20
Blackenbrook Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Estate-grown at Tasman, this zesty wine was hand-harvested and fermented almost entirely in tanks – 3% was handled in old oak barrels. Bright, light lemon/green, it is mouthfilling, with vibrant passionfruit, lime and green capsicum flavours showing good intensity and vigour, and a crisp, dry finish. $20
Blank Canvas Holdaway Vineyard Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
Still unfolding, this single-vineyard wine is from Dillons Point in the lower Wairau Valley. Fermented and lees-aged in stainless steel tanks, it is bright, light lemon/green, with good weight, strong, ripe, tropical fruit and herbal flavours and balanced acidity. A very harmonious wine, it should break into full stride mid-2024+. $30
Blind River Awatere Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This single-vineyard wine was mostly handled in tanks, but 4% of the blend was fermented with indigenous yeasts in old French oak barriques. Pale lemon/green, it is still very youthful, even restrained. Fresh and full-bodied, it is sweet-fruited, with very good depth of passionfruit/lime flavours, lively acidity and a dry finish. Best drinking 2024+. $27
Dog Point Vineyard Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★★
Certified organic, this classic wine is estate-grown at several sites in the Wairau Valley, hand-harvested and fermented, and lees-aged in stainless steel tanks. Arguably the top vintage yet, it is full-bodied and vigorous, with penetrating, ripe, passionfruit/lime flavours showing a distinct touch of complexity and a dry, long finish. Still unfolding, it should break into full stride mid-2024+. $30
Esk Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Grown entirely in the Awatere Valley, this bright, light yellow/green wine was tank-fermented and lees-aged. Full-bodied and dry, it has very good depth of ripe, tropical fruit and herbaceous flavours that are vigorous, finely poised and lingering. $20
Hãhã Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Priced sharply, this freshly aromatic, medium-bodied wine has strong varietal characteristics. Light lemon/green, it has very good depth of passionfruit and green capsicum flavours, making it crisp, dry and tangy. $18
Hunter’s Home Block Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★★
Hunter’s “icon” sauvignon blanc is handpicked from mature, low-cropped vines at Rapaura and is usually partly (about 10%) fermented in seasoned French oak puncheons. Ripely scented and full-bodied, it is vibrant and sweet-fruited, with passionfruit and lime flavours showing excellent delicacy and depth, a touch of complexity, balanced acidity and a long, finely textured finish. $30
Jules Taylor Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
Designed as an “upfront, in-your-face drop”, this punchy wine is a regional blend – “avoiding the main Wairau Valley floor sites”. Tank-fermented, it is mouthfilling and dry, with crisp, penetrating tropical fruit and herbaceous flavours showing excellent ripeness, vigour and depth. Aromatic and finely balanced, it was on the shelves within three months of the harvest. (13.6% alc/vol) $25
Main Divide North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Estate-grown at Waipara and tank-fermented, this youthful wine is freshly aromatic and full-bodied. Bright, light lemon/green, it is strongly varietal, with punchy tropical fruit and green capsicum flavours, appetising acidity and a fully dry finish. (From Pegasus Bay.) $22
Maui North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★½
This tangy, light lemon/green wine is fresh, medium-bodied and strongly varietal. It has very good depth of tropical fruit and herbaceous flavours, crisp and lively. (From Tiki.) $20
Mission The Gaia Project Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Grown in the Awatere Valley, this is a punchy, vigorous wine. It offers lively passionfruit and green capsicum flavours, showing a touch of complexity, and a dry, crisp finish. Best drinking mid-2024+. $22
Mount Brown Estates Grand Reserve North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This is rare – fewer than 100 cases were made. Estate-grown and fermented in stainless steel tanks, it is weighty, with vibrant, tropical fruit flavours, a herbal undercurrent, balanced acidity and a dry, very harmonious finish. Already delicious, it offers fine value. $22
Mount Brown Estates North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
Priced sharply, this single-vineyard wine was tank-fermented and briefly matured on its yeast lees. Punchy, it has mouthfilling body and fresh, crisp passionfruit, lime and green capsicum flavours, showing very good vigour and length. $17
Obliix Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
From Sir George Fistonich, the former owner of Villa Maria, this wine “pairs perfectly with posh fish and chips and a seaside view”. Punchy and tightly structured, it is fresh, vibrant and full-bodied, with crisp, ripely herbaceous flavours and a dry, lengthy finish. Best drinking mid-2024+. $24
Opawa Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
This characterful wine is mostly estate-grown at Rapaura, in the Wairau Valley, and handled in stainless steel tanks; a small part was fermented in large oak cuves. The latest vintage is the best yet. Ripely scented and mouthfilling, it has strong, tropical fruit flavours, a distinct touch of complexity and a crisp, dry finish. Full of youthful vigour, it should be at its best mid-2024+. Fine value. (From Nautilus.) $22
Paddy Borthwick Wairarapa Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This lively wine was estate-grown at Gladstone, in northern Wairarapa. Aromatic, crisp and dry, it is a medium-bodied style, with good intensity of tropical fruit and herbal flavours, lees-ageing notes adding complexity, and a lengthy finish. Best drinking 2024+. $23
Palliser Estate Martinborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
Still very youthful, this highly varietal wine was estate-grown, fermented partly (10%) in old oak barrels, and matured on its yeast lees for two months. Bright, light lemon/green, it is lively and medium-bodied, with penetrating passionfruit and lime flavours, dry and crisp. Best drinking mid-2024+. $30
Rapaura Springs Rohe Blind River Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★★
Grown in the Blind River district, south of the Awatere Valley, and handled in stainless steel tanks, this pale lemon/green wine is instantly attractive. Weighty and vibrant, it has tropical fruit and herbaceous flavours showing impressive delicacy and depth, fresh acidity, and a long, basically dry, finely poised finish. $25
Rapaura Springs Rohe Dillons Point Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★★
From the Dillons Point district of the lower Wairau Valley, this vigorous, light lemon/green wine was fermented in stainless steel tanks. Mouthfilling and lively, it has concentrated, vibrant passionfruit and lime flavours showing very good delicacy, a slightly salty streak, and a crisp, dry, lingering finish. $25
Starborough Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★★
This label typically offers top value. Estate-grown in the Awatere Valley, the new season’s wine is mouthfilling, vigorous and aromatic. Punchy, fresh and intensely varietal, it is ripely herbaceous, with passionfruit and lime flavours, a slightly salty streak, good acid spine, and excellent weight, vibrancy and length. $22
Te Pā Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
Estate-grown, this wine is fresh, full-bodied and flavoursome. Bright, light lemon/green, it has ripe, tropical fruit characters to the fore, gentle herbal notes and a crisp, dry, lengthy finish. $20
The Hunting Lodge Expressions Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This aromatic wine is punchy and youthful. Very fresh and lively, it is medium-bodied and strongly varietal, with melon, lime and green capsicum flavours, dry and lingering. (12% alc/vol) $22
Thornbury Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This bargain-priced wine has lots of youthful impact. Medium-bodied, fresh and vigorous, it has very good depth of ripe passionfruit/lime flavours, a slightly salty streak, tangy acidity and a tight, lingering finish. (From Villa Maria.) $15
Tiki Single Vineyard North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Still very youthful, this vigorous, medium-bodied wine is light lemon/green, with strong passionfruit/lime flavours, refreshing acidity and a finely balanced, persistent finish. Best drinking mid-2024+. $23
Twin Islands Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★½
From Nautilus, this wine is made in very large volumes – more than half a million bottles were produced of this latest vintage. Fresh and medium-bodied, it is strongly varietal, with very good depth of tropical fruit and herbaceous flavours and a basically dry, crisp finish. $17
Two Rivers Convergence Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2003
★★★★½
Subtle rather than pungent, this finely textured wine is still unfolding. Harvested at five sites in the Wairau and Awatere valleys, it was mostly handled in tanks; a small part of the blend was fermented in a concrete egg tank and clay amphora. Medium to full-bodied, it has ripe passionfruit/lime flavours, savoury notes adding complexity and a dry, lengthy finish. Best drinking mid-2024+. $22
Vidal Reserve Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
This attractive, good-value wine was grown in the Wairau and Awatere valleys and matured on its yeast lees before bottling. Light lemon/green, it is medium- to full-bodied, with strong, tropical fruit flavours, a herbaceous undercurrent, lees-ageing notes adding a touch of complexity and a crisp, finely poised finish. Best drinking mid-2024+. $17
Villa Maria Private Bin Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★½
This huge-volume regional blend consistently offers good quality and top value. Very finely balanced for easy drinking, it is medium-bodied, with strong, fresh, tropical fruit flavours to the fore, gentle herbal notes, lively acidity and a basically dry finish. $15
Waiata Vineyard North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★½
Estate-grown in the largest vineyard at Waipara, this is a refined, youthful, vigorous wine. It has strong, vibrant passionfruit/lime flavours, showing excellent delicacy, and a very harmonious, persistent finish. Best drinking mid-2024+. (From Tiki). $20
Whitehaven Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023
★★★★
Very fresh and lively, this medium- to full-bodied wine offers very good depth of tropical fruit and herbaceous flavours. Vigorous and strongly varietal, it is finely balanced, with a crisp, dry finish. $23 l
Note: all wines are 12.5-13.5% alc/vol, unless stated otherwise.
