So everyone seems to love Sauvignon. And the 2015 and 2016 vintages of the unoaked Sauvignon certainly seem to hit the spot for summer drinking with their vibrant fresh fruit aromas and flavours.
But every year we separate out the best grapes for an altogether different wine; an altogether more serious relative. Sometimes we add a little Sémillon to the mix, sometimes it’s just Sauvignon, and the low yielding grapes are carefully and lovingly fermented and aged for some months in the very best oak barrels we can find.
In the past we were perhaps guilty of a little too much oak, but since 2012 the emphasis has been on the lovely fruit we get from the grapes, which we want to use the oak to wrap in a creamy layer of soft texture.
Recent vintages are amongst our own favorites but despite that, this is the wine we sell the least of, so we have decided to give everyone the opportunity to try these wines at a great price for a few weeks only.
Grand Mayne Réserve Sauvignon/Sémillon 2012
Reminiscent of top white wines from Pessac, with floral aromas and vanilla notes. Flavours of white fruits like pear, and some subtle hints of citrus and honeysuckle. Fresh and well balanced. The perfect wine for those looking for Sauvignon freshness but more complexity. Now available with a 20% discount off your special prices until 31 May 2017. Click here to order.
2012 was a great vintage in the area for dry whites as all early ripening grapes were excellent, with only the Cabernet failing to reach full potential.
Making the wine
Each year we select one parcel of the top quality Sauvignon Blanc grapes to be vinified to make this cuvée of white wine. These grapes are left on the vine to ripen for a few more days after the normal white wine harvest. Then they are carefully picked by hand and go straight to the winery, where after several hours skin maturation, they are carefully pressed. The juice is left to settle and then run into new oak casks to ferment. After fermentation the wine is stirred from time to time over a period of several months to increase the complexity. It’s bottled in the March following the vintage.