Tasting Notes
The story
Auntsfield Estate was bought by the Cowley family in the early 1990s when it was still an unplanted cattle farm. However when they researched the property they discovered it had actually produced wine from 1873 through to 1925 which made it the first commercial winery in Marlborough planted some 100 years before anywhere else. They planted blocks of the property with Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir taking real care to select the best plots for each. They now have around 40 hectares planted on fantastic terroir which gives the wine a fine minerality with wonderful texture and definition.
The wine
This is classic Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with extra complexity and minerality than many others. The pungency bursts out of the bottle, intense fruit aromas of passionfruit, gooseberry and canteloupe melon with hints of lime and nectarine.
The aromas are replicated in the flavours - it is leaning towards tropical fruits but they are not at all overripe fruits, much more subtle and the long finish is predominantly gooseberries and lime. The wine has good acidity and will develop further in the next two to three years. It also has a really rounded mouthfeel - Auntsfield Estate aims to produce "texture, complexity and length, balancing the typical Marlborough fruit spectrum and aromatics with richness and mouth feel."
Food Pairing
Recommended with fish, shellfish, chicken, pork and roast ham. It will stand up to richer dishes better than some other white wines.
Producer's Notes
"COLOUR: Pale straw green
AROMA: Lifted and pure aromas of passionfruit, ripe citrus and lime leaf. Notes of fresh and dried herbs, gooseberry and redcurrant add pungency and intensity to the aromatics.
PALATE: Powerful, tight and elegant. This wine displays intense ripe fruit flavours of passionfruit juice and white peach, with citrus notes of lime and mandarin pith. The palate has intense concentration and generous weight, balanced by an underlying minerality and tight structure to shape a wine with lively tension and textural balance."
Awards
18.5- / 20 Raymond Chan Sep 2017
"...The nose is soft and gently voluminous with ethereal, fragrant aromas of tropical fruits and white florals, underlined by passionfruit and fresh herbs. The nose shows a concentrated core with aeration. Dry to taste and medium-bodied, the palate has up-front and rich fruit flavours of tropical fruits, passionfruit, gooseberries and fresh herbs. The fruit has good body and presence, forming a fine-textured and concentrated heart, with good linearity. Fresh, brisk acidity enlivens the fruitiness and aromatics, and the wine flows with good energy to a long, lingering, dry, fine-textured finish, This is a finely concentrated Sauvignon Blanc with ethereal aromas and deep flavours of tropical fruits, passionfruit and gooseberries on a fine, fresh palate."
91 points Wine Spectator Mar 2018
"Supple and smooth, offering a lovely frame for the distinctive notes of Key lime, lemongrass, candied ginger and saline to accent the core of melon and mango flavors. Shows plenty of acidity to keep the flavors fresh."
90 points Cameron Douglas Sep 2017
"Bold, expressive and pungent bouquet of SB with aromas and flavours of grapefruit, Meyer lemon, red apple, pineapple, sweet grass and fresh herbs. Youthful fresh and vibrant acidity with a touch of fruit spice; very long finish, great balance and palate appeal."
