Aroma
Displaying aromas of ripe citrus peel, candy apple and wet stone.
Appearance
Green hues and pale straw in colour.
Palate
The palate is juicy and mouthwatering, with a saline
thread that weaves its way through flavours of
preserved lemon and stone fruits. There is a charming
texture in the wine that creates length and persistence,
supported by naturally vibrant acidity.
Vinification
The winemaking in great years like 2024 isn’t
complicated, all vineyards and sub-blocks are kept as
separate as possible. Freshly pressed juice was cold
settled and left to clarify for several days before
racking and then fermenting at cooler temperatures
with selected yeasts in stainless steel. A small portion
of juice from our estate is fermented in large,
seasoned oak cuves to add texture and mid-palate
weight. The wine components are then left to rest on
their lees before grading and blending. Bottled in
September with no animal products used, this wine is
vegan friendly.
Cellaring Potential
Enjoy over the next three years or more when cellared
correctly.
Vintage Notes
A truly remarkable growing season that was marked by
dry, warm weather. A significant late season frost and
a cooler start to flowering in December created low
yields across much of the region. As an average our
estate and grower blocks were 25-30% down on
average, with a surprising number of Sauvignon
vineyards yielding single digits. Pristinely clean fruit on
the vine and smaller than usual bunches had us
quietly brimming with excitement.
With no disease pressure, and the driest summer in
Marlborough for over 90 years harvest started on the
13th of March and was more of a sprint than a
marathon, with the last block coming in on the 30th of
March. The earliest and quickest harvest in many
years.
Food Matching
A range of seafood dishes, hard cheeses, and crisp
green salads with fresh herbs and olive oil.
Region Notes
Sourced from our estate in the Waihopai Valley and a
handful of growers, some of which have been part of
Catalina Sounds for the last 15 years. There is
increasing emphasis on the Southern Valleys, where
over 60% of our fruit comes from and the higher
proportion of clay creates wines with mineral focus and
mid-palate texture. The remaining 40% is from the
central and lower Wairau areas, where the vines thrive
in the free draining alluvial soils and express classic
herbaceous, citrus and subtle tropical aromas.
