Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Judges Tasting Note - International Wine and Spirits Competition Website

Trophy Best Sauvignon Blanc & Gold Medal Best of Class

Watery greenish lemon colour. Wonderful aromas, asparagus, grapefruit, cut grass and kiwi fruits. Beautifully crisp in the mouth, with citrus acidity giving a real zing, lovely ripeness of fruit and a fine lingering finish.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Jo Burzynska, Viva- New Zealand Herald, 10th October 2007

World Beating Sauvignon

(Jo Burzynska was a judge at the International Wine and Spirits Competition 2007 where the Vavasour Sauvignon Blanc 2006 won the Trophy for Best Sauvignon Blanc.)

This 2006 wowed the judges. Intense and elegant, it explodes with classic Awatere cut grass and tomato stalk character, with racy grapefruit acidity over ripe passionfruit, fresh herbs and notes of smoke and flint.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Sam Kim, Wine Orbit Issue 2, Aug 2007

91 points

Vavasour pioneered the Awatere Valley and the cooler style of Sauvignon Blanc.  This wine represents this sub-region of Marlborough brilliantly.  Intensely aromatic with ripe lemon/lime characters with herbaceous notes.  It’s juicy and lively with crisp acidity and a very long finish.  This wine will look much better with food due to its excellent structure.  At its best: now to 2008. 

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

The Marlborough Express, 23rd August 2007

Vavasour is always a good choice and this sauvignon blanc showcases all the reasons why. ...A whiff of fresh cut summer grass mingled with ripe gooseberries; this wine smells as fresh as it would have on bottling day.

The taste is delectable, exploding mid palate flavours dance around the tastebuds. Pineapple, citrus, capsicum and currants combine to provide the lively, zingy fruit rush - and there aren't any hard edges with this wine either, merely a jot of mineral or flint that is the hallmark of many Awatere wines.

The finish is cleansing lemon lime and the aftertaste is soft, slightly dry, long, rewarding and an open invitation to drink more. And so we did.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

The Press, 16th August 2007

You can't really go wrong with a Marlborough sauvignon blanc, and this offering is no exception. Intensely fruity, with notes of capsicum as well as the signature gooseberry, it couldn't be anything but. It's full-length with a strong finish, but beware of the high alcohol content (13.5%). Almost a meal in itself, this wine is a welcome taste of summer in the depths of winter - especially pleasant on a sunny afternoon.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Bob Campbell, Gourmet Wine Traveller, Aug/Sept 2007

Best Buy Wine

Vavasour founded winemaking in Marlborough's Awatere Valley and launched the distinctive grassy style of sauvignon blanc from the region. The region now has a larger vineyard area than Hawkes Bay, but Vavasour has maintained its first-division status. This is an intense and very elegant Sauvignon Blanc with typically regional cut-grass, tomato leaf, bramble and lemongrass flavours. A dense and appealing wine, it has both great texture and impressive length.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Peter Shaw, Waikato Times, 18th July 2007

There are some obvious gooseberry aromas with a littlesweet pineapple underneath. Citrus and gooseberry flavours dominate the palate. This will make the wine ideal with oily foods as it will cut through the oil and leave the palate clean.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Graeme Barrow, The Northern Advocate, July 07

(It) has a leap-out-of-the-glass bouquet of passionfruit and lime, and strong flavours of passionfruit, lime and herbaciousness from concentrated fruit, balanced with zingy acidity.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Charmian Smith, Otago Daily Times, 20th June 2007

WINE OF THE WEEK

I loved this stylish wine with overtones of green herbs and fruits, mineral and fruit intensity. It seems the essence of good Marlborough sauvignon - fruit intensity, length and lively crispness on the aftertaste.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Geoff Kelly Wine Reviews, May 2007

Perfect lemon-green.  Bouquet is definitive ripe sauvignon blanc,  absolutely lovely,  fragrant honeysuckle blossom melded with white stone fruits,  citrus,  reddest capsicum,  and a touch of sweet basil.  Palate is equally perfect, crisp fruit not too acid, dry for all practical purposes,  not phenolic,  beautiful ripeness and richness lingering for ages in mouth,  inviting another mouthful.  If there is a trace of oak in this, it is perfect, firming the aromatics but untasteable.  Cellar 5 – 10 years,  to taste,  maybe longer on the perfect balance. 19/20.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Food and Beverage Magazine, April 07

Royal Easter Show Gold Medal winner

Fresh and crispy wine yet nicely big and chunky after a year with plenty of body and statement as a result. A lovely sauvignon statement from some long-established vineyards in the Awatere and showing the results. Alive, balanced and delicious.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Glenda Neil, Vinote Wine Cellar Notes 25th April 2007

Seriously good savvy this one. Pungent gooseberry bouquet, crisp dry minerally and well structured wine, long zingy finish, perfect match for those Bluff oysters natural, about $20 in NZ.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Joelle Thomson, NZ Herald - 18th April 2007

...By way of total contrast are the wines from the Awatere Valley, further south and far cooler than most of Marlborough's vineyards. And the wines taste it. The 2006 Vavasour Sauvignon Blanc brings words like austere, pure and fresh to my lips - but not before I've had a second glass.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Sommnet Keith Stewart , 18th April 2007

Look: Light straw/gold.

Smell: Ripe, aromatic herbal nose with depth and a fine quality.

Taste: Impact is firm and fresh, with mineral characters and a fine texture. Elements of fresh herbs and citrus through the mid palate and a firm, fresh finish. Mild intensity adds to its appeal.

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Wine Enthusiast, USA, March 2007

89 Points - Very Good

Standard Marlborough Sauvignon done well, although in this case the wine comes from the slightly more extreme Awatere Valley. The bouquet features passion fruit, lime and grassy notes, while the flavors are also greenish, but with hints of stone fruit and melon to round them out. The long, herb-inflected finish confirms this wine’s quality. — J.C. (3/1/2007)

Vavasour Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Winestate, February 2007

Flinty, Awatere Valley style with good depth of melon, asparagus and green