NZ Sauvignon Blanc

[Kcwhippet]

Now I know what all the hype is about! The manager at one of the shops I frequent talked me into taking two bottles of NZ Sauvignon Blanc a few days ago. We tried the 96 Nautilus with dinner Wednesday eve. It was great! Lots of up front grapefruit with lime following up. There was some grassiness, as well. This beat the pants off any CA SB we've had lately! My guy at the wine shop gave me 20% off to try it, too. He has 5 different brands - we HAVE to try them all.

Bob

[danberger]

Your comments are well taken. I love NZ SB, and write about it as often as I can. But the Nautilus is really a very mediocre example, as good as it is. Try Sacred Hills, Cloudy Bay, or Lawson's Dry Hills, among others. I also like Kumeu River, but it's now in the $30 range. Ouch. The Sacred Hills is about $20 and worth a try. I agree: very few California wineries are making this style of wine. For a bargain in a similarly made wine, try the 1997 Torres (Chile) SB, at about $7. A steal!
Dan Berger

[Kcwhippet]

Dan,

Thanks for the advice. If Nautilus is in the mediocre range, the others you mentioned must be truly fabulous. We have heard mega press on the Cloudy Bay, more so than on the others. Would you consider that the benchmark NZ SB? We'll definitely try the Torres, too.

Bob

[IVYCHEF]

Bob,

I, too, have really started to enjoy NZSB more and more. This started back in '92 at school. Of course, it was Cloudy Bay. I guess you could call it "the benchmark" NZSB as it seems to be fairly consistent over the years and available since at least '92. Some people may disagree and there may be better, but CB does get used as a "measuring stick". Others I tried and liked are: '96 Villa Maria and '97 Brancott Reserve (which is "heavy" for a SB, imho). Also, have heard from internationally traveling friend to try anything by Grove Mill. Haven't found it here or even know if its available stateside.

FWIW,

Kevin

[Kcwhippet]

Kevin,
Kevin,

We'll be sure to try your suggestions. I just did a little surfing and found www.nzwine.com. They list about 300 NZ wineries, but not Brancott, for some reason. They have a link to Grove Mill at www.webnz.com/grovemill, where they list all their distributors, including the US. If you take a look, you should be able to find who sells in your area.

BTW, nice site you have.

Bob

[Jerry D Mead]

Brancott is a brand of Seagram...don't know if it's an actual winery. It's like the new Barwang wines from Australia...there really isn't a winery by that name...the wines are made by McWilliams.

JDM

[IVYCHEF]

Bob,

Thanks for the Grove Mill info. No one in my area, but now I know who the importer is [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

Thanks for visiting my web site..needs a little updating..good project for tomorrow.

Kevin