We've spent the past two days wandering from vineyard to vineyard, sampling the wines. Marlborough is known for its Sauvignon Blanc. It is the bread and butter crop of this region. Approximately 70% of the local production is Sauve, as the locals say (pronounced sauv-ee). For the past 10 years or so we've been drinking a lot of New Zealand Sauve, and we were excited to visit Marlborough, the premier production region for this variety of wine. The funny thing about tasting at the Marlborough vineyards is that they seem completely bored with Sauve, and would much rather get you to try their Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewurtztraminer, Pinot Noir, or even their Chardonnay.
Two days ago we were both people who would confidently say, "I don't know much about wine, but I know what I like." More importantly, we knew what we didn't like. We rarely drank Chardonnay, which in the States is typically overly oaked and buttery. The biggest surprise of our visit to Marlborough was that one of our favorite wines from two days of tasting was a Chardonnay from the boutique vineyard of Summerhouse. A very short time in oak gave it some body and heft, without overwhelming the fruit.
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