Jules Taylor OTQ Single Vineyard Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2018

Description

Dry

• Dry style
• Pineapple & guava
• Citrus & lemongrass
• Honey

"This is gorgeously fruited and inviting on the nose showing feijoa, jalapeno, kaffir lime and lemon peel aromas, leading to a concentrated palate that's brilliantly focused and lingering. It's weighty and mouthfilling, yet bright and refreshing, finishing impressively long and delectable" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Jan 2020

This wine is pale green-gold in colour. Attractive aromas of pineapple and guava, combined with citrus and lemongrass overlay delicate nut and spice notes. Revealing the softer side of its Sauvignon Blanc heritage on the palate, this wine offers a delicious combination of mandarin and guava, beautifully laced with notes of brazil nut and honey from the wild ferment. The wine finishes with lingering lemon notes. Drink now to 2025.

The fruit for this Sauvignon Blanc was selectively hand-picked from a small vineyard in the Taylor Pass subregion of Marlborough. Jules selected particular sun-kissed bunches of fruit that were basking in the sunny Meadowbank Vineyard for this special wine. Following the harvest, Jules took the grapes to the winery and whole cluster pressed them into old barriques where a fast, furious wild fermentation took place. Following primary fermentation, the wine went through a full malolactic fermentation to soften the acid profile and add layers of complexity. She then occasionally stirred the barrels over spring and summer and the wine was blended, stabilised and bottled prior to the 2019 vintage.

Heading into spring, temperatures around Marlborough were a few degrees higher than normal. Moisture content in the soils was low which lead to an even bud burst in the vines. Continued below average rain fall leading into flowering combined with rising temperatures and settled weather created ideal conditions for flowering and a great fruit set. Post flowering, the warmer temperatures continued but the dry conditions gave way to frequent rainfall. These elevated temperatures meant veraison was earlier than usual in Marlborough. With all of the rain that fell January to March, canopies were in excellent health all the way to harvest. This meant that even though the temperatures were warmer than normal throughout the growing season, the fruit maintained flavour intensity and good acidity coming into harvest. The real challenge began with some sizeable rainfall events in late February and early March causing disease issues around the district, but happily we were able to harvest our fruit in great condition before botrytis set in. 

Food Pairing: Try this wine paired with fresh grilled seafood or fried halloumi and a tasty salad.