QPR is the closest football team to my house, and they haven’t been playing very well recently, so imagine my surprise when the winemaker of this Sauvignon Blanc started talking about “unbeatable QPR”. I said “Well, maybe when Stan Bowles and Gerry Francis were still playing!” and he stared back quizzically. I guess he hadn’t been to Loftus Road for a while, but I’m going off topic.

This is a cracking example of Marlborough’s most celebrated export, an incisive Sauvignon Blanc, which feels as if it has one foot in Sancerre with its notes of grass, flint and nettles before opening up to elderflower, lime and grapefruit. The classic gooseberriness (it’s a word if I say so!) is less pronounced than it is with many of its peers and it focuses more on the grape’s herbaceous and elegant side. I must say, the quality-price-ratio here is unbeatable. Oh. 13.5% alc. All hand-picked fruit. Whole cluster pressed. 20% barrel fermented in seasoned French barriques. Drink now-2030.

Press review:

Vinous: “The 2023 Sauvignon Blanc is pure, fresh and elegant - clean, crisp and concentrated, despite its compact, light-bodied core. It is fragrant, but not flamboyant, with flavours of pineapple, green pea, elderflower and citrus. The 2023 is a harmonious and well-judged effort. Drink now-2028.” 91 points