Catalina Sounds Sauvignon Blanc 2021
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The wine has subtle alpine herb notes, overlayed with ripe citrus fruit and touches of minerality. The palate is creamy initially, with focused mid-palate fruit weight and texture. The naturally lower acidity from the 2021 vintage supports expressive and balanced flavors through to a refreshing and lasting finish. Restrained initially, the wine will open up with time in the glass – discover more depth and interest with each sip.
Enjoy with a range of seafood dishes, hard cheeses and crisp green salads with fresh herbs.
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Wine Spectator
This juicy and succulent white opens on a fresh note of lemon verbena and lemongrass, with wonderful purity to the pear, Honeycrisp apple and lemon curd flavors, backed by a lingering note of fresh yuzu juice.
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2020-
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Catalina Sounds draws inspiration for their wines from these graceful, unique flying boats and the respect in which they are held, together with the pristine and awe inspiring environment of the Marlborough Sounds – right on their doorstep. With attention to detail, they strive for their wines to step outside the norm and show individuality and personality, garnering respect wherever they are poured, while harnessing the purity and vibrancy that Marlborough's climate and landscape are naturally blessed with.
At Catalina Sounds Wines, they are proud to have an on-going association with the New Zealand Catalina Preservation Society and hope to continue past sponsorship of the plane at various air shows and events around the country once she is fully restored and back up in the skies in the near future.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.
An icon and leading region of New Zealand's distinctive style of Sauvignon blanc, Marlborough has a unique terroir, making it ideal for high quality grape production (of many varieties). Despite some common generalizations, which could be fairly justified given that Marlborough is responsible for 90% of New Zealand's Sauvignon blanc production, the wines from this region are actually anything but homogenous. At the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, the vineyards of Marlborough benefit from well-draining, stony soils, a dry, sunny climate and wide temperature fluctuations between day and night, a phenomenon that supports a perfect balance between berry ripeness and acidity.
The region’s king variety, Sauvignon blanc, is beloved for its pungent, aromatic character with notes of exotic tropical fruit, freshly cut grass and green bell pepper along with a refreshing streak of stony minerality. These wines are made in a wide range of styles, and winemakers take advantage of various clones, vineyard sites, fermentation styles, lees-stirring and aging regimens to differentiate their bottlings, one from one another.
Also produced successfully here are fruit-forward Pinot noirs (especially where soils are clay-rich), elegant Riesling, Pinot gris and Gewürztraminer.