In South Africa, famous for its extended summers, Sauvignon Blanc is a popular choice for wine drinkers. While a refreshing and crisp style is often enjoyed young and as an aperitif, the various wine growing areas ensure a variety of styles and some complex examples of this cultivar allow for wines with excellent maturation as well as food-pairing potential.
The most significant difference between La Motte’s two styles of Sauvignon Blanc is due to the origin of the grapes.
La Motte Sauvignon Blanc has in recent years become many households’ refreshing white wine of choice. Known for being approachable in style and elegant in character, this friendly and dependable wine serves as an ideal introduction to La Motte quality. The recently released 2013 vintage and gold medal winner at the 2013 Mundus Vini Great International Wine Awards, offers well-integrated flavours of gooseberry, green apple, winter melon and lemon combined with a natural acidity and gentle, creamy palate. The ideal aperitif for summer while being a versatile partner to salads, seafood and alfresco dining.
The grapes for the 2013 La Motte Sauvignon Blanc comes from various growing areas in the Cape Winelands renowned for quality Sauvignon Blanc – 33% from Franschhoek, 33% from Elgin, 20% from Stellenbosch, 6% from Elim, 5% from Durbanville and 3% from Darling. The variety of vintage influences and viticulture all contribute to the complexity of the wine. Each vineyard grows in its own macro climate producing distinctive grapes. The complexity of the wine was further enhanced by lees contact for three months after fermentation as well as blending a 5% component of Semillon with the wine.
A more serious style of Sauvignon Blanc, the La Motte’s Pierneef Sauvignon Blanc is made from a single organically grown vineyard in the Walker Bay region. This limited production is acknowledged for its complexity, minerality, maturation potential and for being a food wine par excellence. The 2013 edition is slightly more full-bodied than in recent years with a good balance between its mineral character and fruit such as gooseberry, passion fruit and even hints of dry wild grass in the background. It promises to mature beautifully in the bottle and is an exceptional companion to seafood as well as spicy Chinese and Thai dishes.
The 2013 Pierneef Sauvignon Blanc with its single-vineyard origin from a south-western facing slope about ten kilometres form the Atlantic Ocean close to the town of Bot River, showcases the characteristics of grapes grown in this area known for its strong winds. Grown in these challenging conditions as well as organically in the absence of fertilisers, the fruit has a good flavour concentration and complexity. Destalked grapes were cold-soaked for 16 hours, fermentation took place over twenty days at 14 °C and the wine was left on the lees for five months prior to being bottled.
The 2013 La Motte Sauvignon Blanc is available from the La Motte Tasting Room at R60 per bottle while the limited release 2013 Pierneef Sauvignon Blanc sells for R108.
Buy the 2013 La Motte Sauvignon Blanc
Buy the 2013 Pierneef Sauvignon Blanc
