A Marlborough, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
Great grape, decorated winery. A slam dunk?...Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc
Today’s wine comes from arguably the best place in New Zealand for Sauvignon Blanc. Sauvignon Blanc is New Zealand’s signature grape variety; quoting one of my favorite wine writers, Tom Stevenson “…Sauvignon Blanc is undeniably a class apart from the same grape grown anywhere else in the world…” (The Southeby’s Wine Encyclopedia, 4th Edition, page 598.) The family-owned Villa Maria winery was founded in 1961 and won its first award in 1962. It is now New Zealand’s most awarded winery. They hold tastings and tours seven days a week. They are devoted to sustainable practices such as night air cooling. The companion wine is an inexpensive Sauvignon Blanc from France, but outside France’s traditional SB area, from a well-known Bordeaux wine producer.
OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.
Wine Reviewed
Villa Maria Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2007 13.5 % alcohol about $13
Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials. “Tasting Note: Very pale straw in color; herbal, citrus, green grass, and gooseberry aromas; dry, fresh citrus, herbs, light body with a bright, fresh medium finish. Serving Suggestion: Serve with summer salads or sip on its own.” And now for my review.
Villa Maria Winery
At the first sips this wine was richly sweet and well oaked. Let’s hope it’s not overdone. It had great length. The initial meal started with chopped mushrooms in puff pastry. The wine responded with citrus and some gooseberry. Then I continued with a barbecued chicken breast prepared with oriental spices. The wine tasted of wormwood. When the Sauvignon Blanc encountered the side dish of potatoes roasted in chicken fat it offered good acidity and some sweetness. Canned palm hearts brought in a bit of smoke. The biscotti dessert rendered this libation long with a taste of caramel.
My next meal started with Japanese Wasabi crackers. The libation responded with light acidity and too much oak. The main dish was a boxed baked Ziti Siciliano that I doused with grated Romano cheese. The SB was sweet with some pear and too much oak that was happily muted by the accompanying eggplant bits. The pecan pie dessert brought back the objectionable oak and the pleasant caramel.
My final meal consisted of an omelet with dried basil, dried parsley, black pepper, cumin, and nutmeg. The wine was sweet and syrupy. The dill pickle managed to put down that almost ever-present oak. The accompanying Greek eggplant with tomatoes, pimentos, and onions rendered the drink nicely sweet and acidic. A pairing with fresh pineapple took away just about everything except for the caramel.
As always, the tastings ended with two cheeses. When accompanying a Mediterranean-style (that’s what the package said) jack cheese this wine’s oak was joined by sweet lemon. With a Swiss cheese I tasted oak and wormwood.
Final verdict. I will definitely not buy this wine again. However, perhaps this wine would have been better had I followed Stevenson’s advice and consumed it within a year or two of bottling.
Access the companion wine A Wine Lover's Weekly Review Of $10 Wine - A Languedoc, France Sauvignon BlancAbout the Author
Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but to be honest, he would
rather just drink fine Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario
French-language community college. His wine websites include
www.theworldwidewine.com
and http://www.wineinyourdiet.com
Visit his website devoted to Italian travel
www.travelitalytravel.com
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