Domaine du Tariquet Sauvignon Vin de Pays des Côtes de Gascogne 2008, South West France (~£5-6)
Clean, fresh, herbaceous wine, touches of tomato and gooseberry, starts of refreshing but the finish is slightly lifeless. B-
Casillero del Diablo Sauvignon Blanc 2009, Central Valley, Chile (£6.99 Sainsbury’s, Asda – both are promoting it at £5 over the coming weeks; also Majestic)
Taut, lively, zesty style has a slightly catty edge, but there’s also a stony/flinty/minerally side, plus lovely citrus and fennel flavours. Rich but dry and refreshing, very classy and great value, especially on promotion at £5. S-
Villa Maria Wairau River Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2009, Marlborough, New Zealand (£11.99, Asda, Majestic, www.nzhouseofwine.co.uk)
Heaps of flavour, like gooseberry pie in a glass, also plenty of citrus, quite rich, fat and rounded, maybe a touch of sweetness, not subtle but packed with honest flesh and fruit. B+
PS Have been assured that this is bone-dry
Château Ducla Experience XIV Bordeaux Blanc, 2006, France (£12.99 Averys)
Sweet toasty oak, hints of gunflint, then a rich, almost Burgundian palate with waxy edges, a touch of butter, and smoky tinned pear flavour. Rich and mouthfilling, this is classy wine. S
Hi Simon
Loved seeing Villa Maria feature on your website. A fun format! A good way to remember the difference between the Villa Maria quality tiers that I use when introducing Villa Maria wines for the first time
Private Bin – Ready to drink – great for a party! Cellar Selection – Dinner for 6!
Reserve -Dinner for 2! Like the Wairau VALLEY you showed on your video. You’re right 2009 was a great vintage – this wine has already won a gold in the NZ International Wine show and our Cellar Selection 09 has won the trophy for top Sauvignon Blanc of the competition at the International Wine and Spirits Challenge. Hope you shared the rest of the bottle with a special meal of rich seafood (scallops are my favourite) with someone special later that day! Keep up the good work!
PS The wine is drier than you think – the residual sugar level is surprisingly low – just 1.5g/l – the richness is just from that amazing fruit concentration we achieve at this level.
Best regards
Charlotte Read
European Market Manager
Villa Maria Estate -IWSC NZ Winery of the Year 2009
Thanks for that Charlotte – just posted another video today featuring the 2007 Reserve Pinot
Thanks Simon, glad it went down well. hope you’re getting lots of hits! Richard
Traffic building up steadily Richard. Just to check that you saw the video – went on the page yesterday, and for some reason it seemed to have disappeared.