Region: Marlborough, New Zealand
Sauvignon blanc can be a hard sell for me, as I often find it to have broth-like qualities interfering with the crisp acidity that I crave. No such problem with winemaker Mike Paterson’s Lay of the Land, which came to me through my NakedWines.com order. One sniff had me remembering making “perfume” from flowers and water as a child.
One taste had me re-imagining it as a deliciously complex appetizer:
Warm honey drizzled over chilled honeydew. It tastes so good, you barely feel the price paid: a bee sting of sharp acidity that quickly dulls to a sprinkle of flavor-enhancing pyramid salt.
It didn’t sting my pocketbook much at all, retailing at $22 for the general public and only $12 for NakedWines.Com Angels. You can find it here.
And here is my full Quini review, with tasting notes.
And my rating:
Other Winos’ Thoughts:
Shy grass and nettle bouquet. The flavor is crisp and fresh with stacks of green fruit and a steely finish. Excellent quality.
Golly’s Wine Drops on the 2014 Vintage
It smelled fresh and fruity, with all the good sauvignon smells of crushed green fruits, gooseberries and maybe a bit of gooseberry leaf too for extra greenery. It’s dry, but that sweet fruit makes it taste rather sweeter than it really is. The acid is medium high, and on the bright side. It packs quite a lot of flavor for a reasonably priced wine. That gooseberry taste is accompanied by something citrusy, maybe grapefruit, and a light tropicality that was almost, but not quite passionfruit. More like someone had sweetened a gooseberry crumble with just one Fruit Salad sweet.
Reviewed 25 March 2016.
