Yesterday was one of those perfect days ; sun was splitting the stones down in Wicklow, paddling pool was out, spending the day with my two gorgeous god children and bestest pal. There was no better time to splash out and treat ourselves to something a little special ... a chilled bottle of Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. I have to admit that I find Cloudy Bay to be overpriced and overrated but Lisa had never tried it before and as she is a huge fan of this grape thought it was only right that she tried the wine that really put New Zealand on the map. A few years back independent off-licences received an allocated amount of this wine per year and I would keep a couple of cases off the floor for those customers who would ask for it in hushed tones. Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc was like the Holy grail at one stage however since the big "R" has hit us all there seems to surprisingly more of it around!! Even the fact that this was the 2008 vintage said it all...
Cloudy Bay was established in 1985 by a Western Australian winery called Cape Mentelle in the Wairau Valley in Marlborough. The cool maritime climate of this region suits the Sauvignon Blanc grape as it allows it develop steadily and slowly which gives those gorgeous gooseberry and asparagus flavours that New Zealand has become so famous for.
Pale straw in colour. Gooseberries, limes and herbaceous aromas. On the palate the flavours are more tropical with pineapples and some apple evident. Much lighter and elegant than the majority of Marlborough big brands but also about two and a half times the price at €24.99. Really enjoyed it as did Lisa but don't know if that was down to the balmy evening and good chat or the wine itself. Admittedly nearly two thirds of the bottle was drunk before food was served up but we had a half glass each which washed the Panzanella salad and baked potatoes down nicely. Till Next Time
Clare
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I think most people agree on Cloudy Bay, however after seeing this link http://bit.ly/bc62eO yesterday it got me excited about NZ Riesling!
ReplyDeleteMyself and Ruth only talking about NZ Riesling this morning as she had brought a bottle of Spy Valley Riesling up to our parents and said it was amazing! Going to try and veer away from Sauvignon this summer if at all possible!
ReplyDeleteGreat blog by the way.
Clare
Thanks Clare, yeah I think it's finally time that Riesling got a chance to live up to its years of hype. If it takes a few 'trendy' New World wineries to push it then so be it!
ReplyDeleteI reckon CB is three times the price of most NZ Sauvvies. Villa Maria is down to €8 in some supermarket "sales" - huge glut of SB on the market and looks like it needs to shift. I think it's greatest strength traditionally, the consistency, is now its greatest weakness - it's all the same. I think this time next year punters will be saying how much they hate Sauvignon Blanc but love their Pouilly Fumé or Sancerre.
ReplyDeleteLar
Maybe we could start a new movement Q.R.S (Quaff Real Sauvignon)!!
ReplyDelete