Owned by the Neylon family, Rapaura Springs has an astonishing track record of Trophies and top points for its wines. The family started their farming career with mussels and apples but found vines much more rewarding and since making this move haven’t looked back. Their goal is to enhance the environment around them through sustainable vineyard and winemaking practices that will leave a natural legacy for future generations. Rapaura Springs have a philosophy of minimum intervention, and all vineyards are carefully managed under strict Sustainable Wine Growing New Zealand standards. They let Marlborough’s land, climate and water do the hard work, then handcraft superb wines at the state of the art winery, leaving the vineyards to tell their own story, with just a little nudge in the right direction from experienced viticulture and winemaking teams. The result is a selection of focused, terroir-driven Sauvignon Blancs and Pinot Noirs with outstanding varietal expression.
Rohe, meaning territory in TeReo Maori, is a range of wines that showcase Marlborough’s sub-regions. Blind River is a small sub-region found in Awatere, Marlborough. Arguably the harshest environment of all the valleys, this area is particularly windy and dry. The station that our vineyard is located on was once named Atacama after this driest desert on Earth in Chile. The climate and terroir develops unique and intensified flavours as the grapevines are naturally restricted.
After harvest, the Blind River Sauvignon Blanc was gently pressed before individual parcels were batch fermented in stainless steel with selected yeast strains to retain the vibrant fruit characters unique to this sub-region. Once fermentation was complete, the wine was racked, stabilised and filtered before bottling.
The 2022 growing season began with significant rain, marking the end of three years of drought in Marlborough. A period of warmth in early December produced a welcome and better than average fruit-set. In late February there were a couple of significant rains which replenished the soil moisture levels that had reduced during summer. During the two weeks that followed cool days and nights meant the acidities remained on the high side. Harvest coincided with the peak of New Zealand’s Omicron outbreak, which put some pressure on staffing. Excellent teamwork meant harvest took place when the fruit was ready, retaining vibrant acidity and concentrated fruit flavour.
Intensely aromatic with lemongrass and ripe citrus aromas and concentrated fruit flavour. The palate is weighty with mouth-filling layers of ripe grapefruit, lemongrass and melon. The mouth-watering acidity helps drive a lengthy finish.
Mussels, fresh seafood, the classic fish and chips and Asian cuisine pair wonderfully with Rohe Sauvignon Blanc.
5 Stars – Michael Cooper Buyers Guide 2022
95 Points – Wine Orbit, Sam Kim 2022
94 Points – Candice Chow 2022
93 Points – Bob Campbell MW 2022
93 Points – David Walker -Bell 2022
92 Points – Cameron Douglas MS 2022
91 Points – James Suckling 2022
Marlborough, New Zealand
Sauvignon Blanc
Screwcap
13
Yes
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