• Dry style
• French oak
• Lemgrass & guava
• Subtle toast

"Light, bright colour; intense nutty, spicy, balsamic bouquet with dried flowers and assorted spices galore, the palate tremendously intense and powerful, loaded with a myriad of flavours and a multi-layered resonance that lingers ion and on. A profound wine that exists on a higher level than most Sauvignon Blanc" Huon Hooke, Real Review, Jan 2024

"On the nose, in its inchoate youth here, we see layers of lemongrass, tatami mat, white pineapple husk, green apple skins, white pepper, alyssum and star anise. In the mouth, the wine is balanced and harmonious already—this is crucial for us to understand how it could be such a composed wine in the future. Gorgeous expression" Erin Larkin, Dec 2023

Radiating a mesmerizing white-gold hue adorned with shimmering green lights, Cape Crest Sauvignon Blanc ’22 bursts with its signature perfume – vibrant concentrated nectarine, grapefruit and lime zest with lemongrass, guava and subtle toast notes. The attack broadens into ripe stone fruit and herbal seasoning, developing remarkable richness across the length of the palate. A balanced weight and crystalline acidity add to the immense fruit concentration and long savoury, saline finish. An embodiment of excellence. Is this the best Cape Crest yet? Certainly, it’s the most complex and complete.

Cape Crest and its gannet symbol refer to Cape Kidnappers, the southern point of Hawke Bay, home to the world’s largest mainland colony of these remarkable marine birds. The fully ripe grapes for Cape Crest ’22 were hand harvested from individual plots within Te Mata Estate’s vineyards between 28 February and 13 March 2022.

The separate parcels were each destemmed and lightly crushed, then cooled before a brief period of skin contact. Following pressing and cold-settling, they were run to a mixture of new and seasoned French oak barrels for fermentation. The resulting wines were aged on lees, with regular stirring, for a further 11 months before bottling in February 2023. Cape Crest ’22 is a blend of 88% sauvignon blanc, 7% sauvignon gris and 5% semillon.