Terre à Terre is proud to present its first release of Down to Earth Sauvignon Blanc from our close-spaced Sauvignon Blanc vineyard in Wrattonbully, South Australia.
For the first time in 2012 Terre à Terre has made part of its Sauvignon Blanc in stainless steel and we have decided to call it Down to Earth as an indication of its more modern style. The Terre à Terre Sauvignon Blanc is still ageing in barrel and will be released towards the end of 2012.
The 2012 vintage proved to be a relief after the tragic 2011 vintage. It was warm and early, with a lot of work done in the vineyard to reduce vine vigour, and minimal sulphur and copper sprays used to prevent the onset of any diseases. The vineyard was bunch thinned in January 2012 and fully ripened, healthy Sauvignon Blanc grapes were hand-harvested at the end of February 2012.
The fruit was transported back to the Tiers winery in the Piccadilly Valley (Adelaide Hills) where it was crushed, destemmed, and cooled to 2°C. The juice was settled in tank for two weeks before the fermentation was started at low temperatures. After two and a half weeks of fermentation, the wine was left in tank on full lees for four months with lees stirring every month. The wine did not go through malolactic fermentation to ensure that a crisp acidity balances the texture.
The result is a very good example of modern Sauvignon Blanc with bright fruit characters combined with a good texture and good varietal characters. It is also showing great intensity of flavours and good length, demonstrating the exceptional quality of the terroir in our Wrattonbully vineyard site.
