This is a lovely wine, rich and bold but is it quintessential New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc?
The nose blows you away. Grapefruit jumps from the glass with hints of lime zest and guava. It is almost bombastic.
But on the palate there is an impression of sweetness which I find a little unctuous, with the citrus notes appearing honeyed. The wine is more weighty on the palate than is typical with a long crisp finish bursting with minerality. Good intensity and finesse.
The sweetness gives me pause. Don’t get me wrong, this is a fine wine with plenty of acidity to balance the ripe, tropical fruit. But the most interesting examples of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc give you a little more grassy essence joined with jalapeno to set off the bright citrus, a profile that is less gratuitously ingratiating. It likely has the stuffing to age well.
I want a little severity in a Sauvignon Blanc. That’s what it does best. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy this but I might not put it in the pantheon of great wines as the Wine Spectator did last year, awarding it #21 on their top 100.
Score: 92
Price: $27
Alc: 13.5 %
Exploring the Philosophy of Food and Wine 
Does the almost bombastic nose-blowing nose ultimately translate to a bracing
sensation? Or is the slightly cloying sweetness–and annoying grass-less, jalapeño-free unctuousness, something that ultimately undermines anything we might call “bracing”? If so, don’t we have a 91 on our hands?