Wine review - 2007 Delta Sauvignon Blanc
2008 International Wine Challenge
Winestate Special Edition 2007 - Best New Releases
Delta Sauvignon Blanc 2007
A big, soft and generous wine that is very approachable. Complex gooseberry aromas with a complexity of estery ferment characters and an excellent acid/sugar balance on the powerful fruit palate.
Delta Vineyards, Delta Sauvignon Blanc
Having had more than my fair share of tasting Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand and Chile in the last few weeks (see Sauvignon Blanc styles analysed and the linked tasting notes), I was delighted to come across this New Zealand Sauvignon that caught my attention - not for its extreme pungency but for a very attractive combination of distinctive, top-quality, ripe Marlborough fruit and a gentle subtlety that almost hid an underlying minerality and elegant persistence.
Delta Wines is a joint venture between Kiwi winemaker Matt Thomson and David Gleave
MW, MD of Liberty Wines in London. Although Liberty now has a much wider portfolio, they began life as Italian specialists and it was in Italy that Matt and David met when Matt was working a vintage there in 1994. Matt is consultant winemaker to other top
Marlborough wineries such as Saint Clair and Mudhouse, and he continues to make wine in Verona, Friuli and Piemonte.
Delta’s first wines - both Pinot Noir - were released in 2004, and this is only the second
vintage of the Sauvignon. It comes from a single 25-acre vineyard in Dillon’s Point, just
west of Blenheim, owned by Matt’s wife Sheena and planted with two different Sauvignon clones (for clone buffs: the quite widely planted BDX 317 and the Sancerre-derived CI1). Matt believes that the combination of heavier soils and proximity to the sea creates one of the very best locations for Sauvignon in New Zealand.
Gold medal at the 2007 Air New Zealand Wine Awards
Our 2007 sauvignon blanc won a gold medal at the 2007 Air New Zealand Wine Awards.Winestate Magazine Australia - October 2007
Top equal in category.
