Reviving Palates with Lifting Fruit and Zesty Acidity

Of the 32 vintages of 2011 and 2012 Marlborough sauvignon blanc tasted at the Dallas Morning News and TexSom Wine Competition, nine were awarded gold medals, “an exceptionally high proportion for any class of wine”, according to one of the four judges on the panel, Mike Dunne. Dunne says he and the panel made their way through several uninspiring flights of blended red wines from various California regions before hunkering down to a class they were confident would revive their flagging palates with lifting fruit and zesty acidity. “What accounts for such an impressive showing?” Dunne asks. “The same reason, no doubt, that explains why the export of sauvignon blanc from New Zealand to the United States soared 25 per cent last year, despite the rising value of New Zealand currency and a panting American economy still trying to regain traction. New Zealand sauvignon blanc is reliable; when consumers grab a bottle they know what kind of wine they are getting, almost without exception.”