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| 2022 Villa Maria, Sauvignon Blanc |
Is it okay to be influenced by reviewers/influencers? I guess you can answer this question two different ways depending on just how you look at it. On one hand, if a wine reviewer tells you they either loved or hated a particular wine and you simply jump on the bandwagon of loving it or hating it simply because that reviewer has a lot of followers and you feel that you surely can't be different or have your own palate then yes, that can certainly be an issue. If on the other hand, you look at this question from the angle of actually being inspired by that wine reviewer to do your own investigation into either that particular wine or varietal, that would be a good thing. I myself get inspired at times by some of the wine related YouTube channels that I watch because they at times either inspire me to try a particular varietal that I may have never even heard of before or, they inspire me to try a wine from an area that I have never tried before. Inspiration can come in many different forms and while inspiration can be healthy and actually expand our thinking or in this case, our palate, it can also at times educate us as well. There are times when outside influences can be a bad thing such as when we simply cling on to other peoples feelings or unsupported beliefs, it can also work for the best at times when we learn to think for ourselves and justify our opinions. I hope when you guys read this blog or watch my wine YouTube channel, (https://www.youtube.com/@TheDesertWineGuy/featured) you take what I have said into account but realize that in the end, you have your own palate to please, your own thoughts and in the end, your own decisions to make. I guess what I am saying is, in reference to wine, if you learn something about wine from any wine reviewers comments then you have educated yourself and made yourself more wine knowledgeable which is always good. Now, it is review time :)
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Sauvignon Blanc Grapes On The Vine
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So, the other day I was on an awesome YouTube wine channel (
https://www.youtube.com/@WineMastery/videos) that I follow and they were doing a review on the 2022 Villa Maria, Sauvignon Blanc, and I thought to myself, "Oh, I reviewed that wine". When I went to see if my rating on the wine was the same as theirs, I discovered that I had actually not reviewed the wine. That is so crazy because I see this wine around everywhere and I couldn't believe that I haven't reviewed it yet. Well, there was only one way to remedy this issue, I went out and bought a bottle. Today we will be taking a look at that wine and what I thought of it. I bought the wine at my local grocery store for $11.99 and it comes in at a very reasonable 12.5% alcohol. The bottle is sealed with ...a screw cap unfortunately and the grapes for the wine come the Marlborough (Awatere and Wairau Valleys) region of New Zealand.
Let's take a look at the label on the wine bottle now. Yep, this is a New Zealand wine for sure. I don't know what it is but these Sauvignon Blanc from that country but they always seem to present the wines in the same type of way, they always scream "New Zealand" to me for some reason. Don't get me wrong guys as this is a good thing, I think the labels are pretty nice and convey the wines very nicely. Aside from that, I love how they seem to interpret the varietal. With this particular wines label, I love the fonts chosen and the way the words are layed out. Aside from the main label, pay special attention to the foil on the neck of the bottle as I really think it truly makes use of the area nicely.
Now, lets check out the nose of this New Zealand, Sauvignon Blanc. Okay so I am getting a note of fresh and lively note of lemon and perhaps just a tad bit of grapefruit as well. I really wish I could tell you that I am getting more here on the nose but unfortunately, I can't as that lemon and grapefruit is all I picked up.
Now for the palate characterization of the wine. The first thing I picked up here is that there is a slight yet noticeable zing, a carbonation to the wine. You should know that this is a note that I have never been a fan of in a still wine for many reasons with the most important being that it simply throws my palate off big time. The next reason is that I have never seen a need for it, it does nothing good for a wine, it benefits it in no way in my humble opinion. Moving on now, as is normal with this expression of wine from this area, there is a big note of lemon grass and it is as usual, on the forward side. The mixing of both the carbonation and the lemon grass is in my opinion, just simply "okay" as I really don't think the two go well in combination at all. The typical grapefruit note is here as well and it is nicely done and presented in a good way. Passion Fruit comes up next and it is forward, fresh tasting and juicy. Acidity I thought could have been just a bit higher here in my opinion but in general, it is decent and does its job fairly well.
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Villa-Maria, Winery
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Guys, before I go on I have to address one thing. I think that there can at times be a confusion between a wines acidity and the note of lemon grass for some and I certainly can understand that confusion. At times as in this wine, this confusion can be remedied by taking a sip and sitting back for a second in order to really process what you are tasting. Having said that, this is a wine that to an extent, you really do have to taste, sit back and decipher, or process as it does need a bit of thought put into it at times. I do like the fact that this is a noticeably dry wine as not only do I not enjoy drinking my daily allowance of sugar in a glass of wine, I also think a quality wine should offer up more then simply sweetness and tropical fruit. The dryness here is very evident even at the wines alcohol percentage. Surprisingly, there seems to be a very slight flatness to the wine around the mid-palate which as you can imagine, I find to be weird to say the least. This flatness note isn't huge or anything but I did pick it up and for me, it of course did have a negative effect on the wine and what I will rate it. The wine also possesses a saline note to it which comes into play almost at once on the opening and is offered up even more towards the mid-palate. There is an initial bit of a sweetness to the wine however the other notes provide a nice cut (or cover) to that note and hold it in check very nicely. Green apple is a mid-palate note as well and it shines through nicely with a nice fresh green apple bit of sharpness to it. You can really almost taste the heat these vineyards experienced here in the wine, the bright Summer days the grapes enjoyed, it really shows in the taste of the wine. Well guys, that is my thoughts on this wine, I have to say, I am not a big lover of it. I will see you in the next paragraph where I will put this all together and give you my Desert Wine Guy rating on it.
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Sauvignon Blanc - Flavor Profile
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So, here we are, at the conclusion of another wine review.. From what I have read concerning the winery, the 2021 vintage put this wine on the map and all I have to say to that is that I hope that vintage tasted better then this vintage did. While I am not saying this was a bad wine, there are better New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs this wine has to go up against that don't cost to much more money such as Whitehaven wines. While Whitehaven is around $17.99, I think it far outclasses this wine, gives a much better perspective on what the varietal can taste like when done well and is worth the extra $6. As a matter of fact, there area actually a lot of New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs which outclass this wine such as the Kim Crawford which sells for around $15 as well as the Oyster Bay which sells for $11. Both of these wines outclass this wine big time and the few dollars more they might cost is well worth the money. As far as this particular wine is concerned, I am giving it 87 points as I was really not impressed with it, that carbonation did a number on it. Is this a pool wine? Yeah, for sure but you don't, or shouldn't in my opinion rate a wine based upon what food you think it may go with or what environment it might go best in. You rate a wine on what the wine tastes like and how does it hold up to its varietal standards.
The Desert Wine Guy
