Vinepair featured Dog Point Vineyard in a story about the next frontier in New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Writer Courtney Schiessl featured several quotes from Dog Point co-owner James Healy and highlighted the winery’s barrel aged Sauvignon Blanc, Section 94.
The piece explains that New Zealand vintners are actively pushing boundaries, to which Healy adds, “Now that producers are confident of their understanding of Sauvignon Blanc, they are naturally wanting to explore alternative expressions of the variety.” Continuing, “Almost all serious producers of Sauvignon Blanc in New Zealand have at least two styles on sale.”
Healy and the team at Dog Point have also introduced wild, barrel-fermented and aged Sauvignon Blancs to New Zealand with Section 94. Shiessl says that Healy “recognized the potential to craft a Sauvignon Blanc in this style from a specific parcel within the Dog Point Vineyard.” Healy said, “That particular vineyard … produced wine with a distinct and concentrated citrus influence, which, combined with these vinification techniques, made it an obvious choice to make in this way.” Taking inspiration from other cool-climate Sauvignon Blanc regions, Dog Point ages Section 94 in older seasoned barrels.
Read the full story and several more quotes from Healy HERE
Dog-Point_Vinepair_10.22.20Related Wines
Dog Point Vineyard
Dog Point Vineyard Section 94 Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Marlborough
Section 94 is widely regarded as the most distinctive and greatest Sauvignon Blanc being made in New Zealand today. James Healy and Ivan Sutherland were among the first to begin fermenting their Sauvignon in barrel with wild yeasts, a technique that along with the old vines they use, leads to a full-bodied wine that is less fruit-forward, more exotic, and has immense textural complexity.
Related Producers
Dog Point Vineyard
Marlborough, New Zealand
Almost since its inception, Dog Point has been recognized as among the very top (arguably the very top) wine producers in New Zealand. Their two very different Sauvignon Blancs, their Pinot Noir, and their Chardonnay are all wines of astounding quality and complexity not just in the context of New Zealand wines, but globally.
