Esk Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2020 (New Zealand) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine review is a lovely white wine from New Zealand that arrived at the LCBO last weekend as part of the December 17th LCBO VINTAGES Release.

It is produced by Esk Valley Wines, a brand that was created in the 1970s, but whose story begins in the 1930s as Glenvale Winery and a specialist in fortified wines. In 1986, the historic winery in Hawkes Bay was purchased from the Bird family by George Fistonich, owner of Villa Maria. Esk Valley quickly developed a reputation for its innovative and quality wines, breaking boundaries by introducing new grape varieties and wine styles to Hawkes Bay.

Today, Esk Valley Wines are crafted by winemaker Gordon Russell, one of New Zealand's most recognized winemaking identities. Born in New Plymouth, New Zealand, he developed an appreciation for wine while in England and Europe and when he returned to NZ, he joined Villa Maria in Auckland in 1987 and was appointed Winemaker of Esk Valley Wines in 1993. Gordon strives to make wines that tell the story of the vineyard, and with his many years of experience he has learned that paying attention to detail in the vineyard results in the winemaking process becoming a simple, hands-off affair. Gordon is passionate about using concrete fermenting tanks, and continues to use them even after Esk Valley moved its production in 2018 to the new facility in Gimblett Gravels.

Although Esk Valley Wines is based in Hawkes Bay, they do craft wines using fruit from other wine regions in New Zealand, such as this white wine from Marlborough. Labelled as a regional blend, this 100% Sauvignon Blanc is crafted with fruit from stony vineyard sites, with 72% coming from the cooler Awatere Valley and 28% from the Wairau Valley. The Wairau Valley fruit provides structure and tropical fruit notes, while the Awatere Vineyard offers acidity and pungent notes of nettle, pea pods, and gooseberry. All of the vineyards are carefully managed and crop thinned in the pursuit of quality fruit. To craft this wine, individual vineyard parcels were harvested and transported to the winery for immediate pressing to capture the freshness of the fruit. It was fermented at cool temperatures using selected yeast strains and then left on its lees to gain richness and complexity prior being blended and bottled in November 2020.

The growing season in 2020 was a winemaker's dream harvest as good sized crops were ripened under clear, blue skies. The days were warm and dry, while the nights were cool enough for the vines to rest and retaining acidity in the fruit, thus bringing freshness to the wines. Let's see how this 2020 Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand is tasting tonight...

Tasting Note:

ESK VALLEY SAUVIGNON BLANC 2020 - Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#12638) (XD) - $21.95
Screw cap. The fragrant nose has classic NZ Sauvignon Blanc aromas of gooseberry and nettle, plus lemon/lime citrus and touches of tropical fruit with mineral undertones. There is good weight on the medium-full bodied, dry palate with delicious gooseberry, nettle, and tart lemon/lime citrus replays, plus grapefruit on the flavour profile. Nicely balanced throughout with crisp and vibrant acidity. Leesy mineral notes come to the fore on the creamy, long, and succulent finish. Recommended buy! Score: 90 pts

Since there is very limited availability of other fine wines by Esk Valley at the LCBO, you're best bet to order them through their Agent - Univins & Spiritueux.