Nautilus Cuvee Marlborough Brut
-
James
Suckling -
Wine
Enthusiast - Vinous
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Marlborough’s cool climate gives an elegant, finely structured, high acid wine which shows the richness of a Pinot Noir dominant blend. Traditional method winemaking and 36 months’ aging on lees give a fine bead, creamy mousse, and a distinctive nutty, brioche bouquet, and harmonious and lingering palate.
Although this dry, mineral, high acid wine is a classic match for oysters, the creamy texture and complex, toasty bouquet compliment a variety of dishes, such smoked salmon and crème fraiche blinis, or goats cheese choux buns. The breadth on the palate pairs well with stronger flavors such as a hint of Indian spices, or a roast chicken.
Blend: 70% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
This has complex aromas of chamomile, beeswax and some dried peaches with sappy red berries and pastry, too. Complex. The palate offers a very bright, fresh and quite crunchy feel with attractive red fruit and a lithe, juicy and succulent feel that holds long. Ruby grapefruit to close.
-
Wine Enthusiast
On its lees for three years, this traditional method bubbly, from one of Marlborough's quality-led producers, opens with a nose of citrus and green apple fruit, buttered toast, honey and yeast. On the palate there's less opulence than the autolytic nose suggests, making the acidity feel a little sharp around the edges and wanting for some creaminess, but there's still a long citrusy finish, bright bubbles and plenty of drinkability.
-
Vinous
The non-vintage Brut Cuvee (Marlborough) is a blend of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay that spends a minimum of three years on lees, creating a sparkling wine with a fine mousse and more-ish flavors. The finesse of the juice reflects the delicate handling: it is hand-harvested and whole-bunch-pressed, and only the free-run juice is used. While the Pinot brings roundness and depth, the Chardonnay in this cool climate adds a firm line of tension that runs through the wine's core. You can expect red cherry and crisp apple flavors alongside the lees-derived biscuit notes. The finish is rather fleeting.
The natural balance and mathematical precision of the striking Nautilus shell has been our inspiration to create expressive, textural, precisely crafted wines at Nautilus Estate since 1985, the early days of Marlborough winegrowing. Back then there were around 80 wineries in NZ. Today there are around 700. Yet we remain small, under the same family ownership, and committed to making outstanding wines from the stunning Marlborough region of New Zealand. All Nautilus Estate's grapes come from a handful of vineyards in the strikingly beautiful Marlborough region in the South Island of New Zealand. Over the last thirty years, we have searched out special vineyard sites that give distinctive and exciting flavours, from the alluvial flood plains of the Wairau River, to later plantings moving up onto the hills in the Southern Valleys. Differences brought about by altitude, aspect and topography combine with diverse soils to produce unique individual growing conditions and wines. The high sunshine hours (2,400 hours annually), shelter from the prevailing winds, and proximity to the cool Pacific Ocean, combined with a high diurnal temperature range make it a great place to grow grapes. Winemaker Clive Jones joined Nautilus in 1998 and has overseen our Pinot Noir programme from its inception, including planting modern, low yielding, premium Dijon clones and designing a dedicated, gravity-flow Pinot Noir winery in 2000, the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Clive is equally passionate about the other varieties and has designed the Nautilus Whites Cellar in 2006 with Marlborough’s flagship variety, Sauvignon Blanc, along with environmental considerations, firmly in mind. This dedication has been rewarded by numerous accolades and trophies over the years as well as positions for Clive on the Marlborough Winegrowers and national NZ Winegrowers boards. But while we always appreciate recognition from our peers, it is belief in the marriage of fine wine, fine food and great company that inspires each new vintage. All our wines are sustainably produced and vegan friendly.
A term typically reserved for Champagne and Sparkling Wines, non-vintage or simply “NV” on a label indicates a blend of finished wines from different vintages (years of harvest). To make non-vintage Champagne, typically the current year’s harvest (in other words, the current vintage) forms the base of the blend. Finished wines from previous years, called “vins de reserve” are blended in at approximately 10-50% of the total volume in order to achieve the flavor, complexity, body and acidity for the desired house style. A tiny proportion of Champagnes are made from a single vintage.
There are also some very large production still wines that may not claim one particular vintage. This would be at the discretion of the winemaker’s goals for character of the final wine.
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.