Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc 2021 (New Zealand) - Wine Review

Tonight's white wine review is this always terrific Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand. After a one year absence and skipping a couple of vintages, the 2021 vintage of this wine arrives at the LCBO this weekend as part of the August 13 LCBO VINTAGES Release.

Greywacke (pronounced Grey-wacky) was established in 2009 by legendary winemaker Kevin Judd. The name refers to the high prevalence of rounded greywacke river stones found in the soils of the vineyard in Rapaura. He registered the name while working for another winery in New Zealand for many successful years and sought to fulfill a dream to create his own wines. This dream became a reality for him and his wife, Kimberley, in 2009 and Greywacke remains a family affair located now in the heart of Marlborough's Omaka Valley, one of the Southern Valleys.

Kevin is a pioneer in Marlborough winemaking and uses a 'keep it simple' and hands-on approach with minimal interventionist winemaking techniques. All of the fruit for Greywacke wines are sourced from mature vineyards in prime viticultural sites. The vineyards are sustainably managed with a substantial and increasing portion coming from organically farmed sites. Crop levels are restricted to enhance concentration of flavours, while meticulous canopy management allows for sufficient sun exposure to deliver ripeness of flavour, textural richness, and optimum acid balance. Greywacke is accredited with Appellation Marlborough Wine to ensure provenance, authenticity and integrity. As a renowned photographer, Kevin's photos adorn the labels of all Greywacke wines.

For the 2021 vintage, the fruit was sourced from various prime vineyard sites in Marlborough's Southern Valleys and the central Wairau Plains, specifically in Woodbourne, Renwick, and Rapaura. This Sauvignon Blanc was grown on various soil types ranging from the young alluvial soils of Rapaura and Renwick which contain high proportions of New Zealand's ubiquitous greywacke river stones, to the older and denser clay-loam soils of the Southern Valleys. The grapes were mostly machine-harvested during cool and often cold night time conditions, then trucked to the winery in the Omaka Valley where they were lightly pressed to yield a modest volume of high-quality juice. It was fermented primarily in stainless steel tanks with cultured yeast, while a smaller portion underwent spontaneous indigenous yeast fermentation in old oak barrels. All individual vineyard batches were kept on their lees and separate until they were blended in late June, and finally bottled in mid-August of last year.

The 2021 growing season produced a smaller crop due to some very cold nights and light frost in September, followed by drought conditions from December to March. However, quality was not compromised as the vintage is described as exceptional with Sauvignon Blanc showing great intensity and balance. Having tasted several previous vintages of this Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc over the years, I fully expect this latest vintage to be just as delightful. Let's see how this 2021 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand is tasting tonight...

Tasting Note:

GREYWACKE SAUVIGNON BLANC 2021 - Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#164228) (XD) - $25.95
Screw cap. Fragrant, perfumed, and highly aromatic, it is subtly nose-tingling and quite complex with ripe tropical fruit, passion fruit, guava, kiwi, mango, and citrus aromas with delicate floral tones and touches of rock melon and lemongrass. It's medium-full bodied and fleshy with very good concentration and ripe flavour replays of passion fruit, kiwi, guava, zesty citrus, mango, and lemongrass. Nicely textured on the mid-palate, while acids are fresh, juicy, and well-balanced. Leans more floral and citrusy with a sense of minerality on the very long, zesty finish. Keeps getting better every year. Highly recommended buy! Score: 92+ pts

Other excellent wines by Greywacke are available at the LCBO and through their Agent - Connexion Oenophilia.