Clark Estate Riverside Terrace Sauvignon Blanc 2023

The Upper Awatere valley is well known for its rugged soils and unforgiving climate, but also the many river terraces that jigsaw their way down the valley. Our river terraces sit amongst the foothills of the Blackbirch range, and the vines grown here are quite different to other terraces along the valley as a result.

Our Riverside Terrace Sauvignon Blanc is a pure expression of our terroir. We have created wines that are unencumbered by the effect of higher alcohol, letting the pristine flavours of the Upper Awatere shine and give these wines a definite sense of place.

Clark Estate takes bold steps to stand out from the crowd and is not afraid to show what can be done. Whether it be cutting edge winemaking, dynamic packaging or market driven initiatives such as “own label” and Key-Keg to cater for the fast growing wine-on-tap market.

Clark Estate showcases the best of Marlborough wines with an emphasis on the Upper Awatere Valley. The portfolio includes Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Grigio, Classic Riesling, (medium sweet) Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Late Harvest Pinot Gris, Botrytised Riesling and Sparkling Riesling.

The Upper Awatere valley is well known for its rugged soils and unforgiving climate, but also the many river terraces that jigsaw their way down the valley. Our river terraces sit amongst the foothills of the Blackbirch range, and the vines grown here are quite different to other terraces along the valley as a result.

Our Riverside Terrace Sauvignon Blanc is a pure expression of our terroir. We have created wines that are unencumbered by the effect of higher alcohol, letting the pristine flavours of the Upper Awatere shine and give these wines a definite sense of place.

Our main terrace is home for our Sauvignon Blanc vines, which are made up of different blocks depending on the soils beneath. The vines for these wines come from Block 6. The soils in this block are very stoney with little loam and as a result the vines crop much lower yields, therefore ripening flavours much earlier than the sugars can accumulate. Naturally these wines will have lower alcohol but with the full spectrum of intense flavours only the Upper Awatere can give.

Harvested in the cool of the evening, the grapes were gently pressed and the juice was fermented under very cool conditions to retain the intensity of the flavours. Once dry, the wine was left on yeast lees to develop even more complex flavours.