Disclaimer: I don’t like Sauvignon Blanc.
In reality Sauvignon Blanc should be a variety I like: it normally makes bright and zippy wines with great sense of refreshing acidity and refreshing fruit profile. I even enjoy herbaceous flavors in wines, so even those should pose no problems to me, right?
Well, I actually don’t dislike Sauvignon Blanc per se - the biggest problem with Sauvignon Blanc is that almost all the wines made from this variety taste exactly as described above. Such wine in itself can be terrific, but the problem arises when every single wine tastes exactly like each other. Then the differences in the wines are simply minute changes in, say, level of acidity (5,9 vs. 6,1 g/l total acidity), mouthfeel or intensity of fruit flavors but the overall impression is pretty much the same, the wine loses everything what makes it interesting and becomes a joke. I’ve been to tastings where we drink Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand, Australia, France and Chile and they all tasted basically exactly like each other - no noticeable differences whatsoever!
As an aside, this is exactly the same reason I dislike heavy usage of new oak: I don’t dislike new oak flavors per se (for example they often suit strong beers really well), but the anonymizing effect they have on a wine. When bold new oak flavors muddle the fruit profile and sense of place, I really don’t care how impressive and balanced a wine is if I can’t tell whether it is a Pinot Noir, Merlot, Nebbiolo or Tempranillo!
Anyways. Back to the subject. There are a few places where they make Sauvignon Blancs I more often like than dislike: Steiermark in Austria and Loire Valley in France. In these places the wines exhibit enough variation to keep them interesting and the wines are typically not made into this modern, exuberant style that combines exotic fruit flavors with leafy herbaceous tones, but instead show nuance and qualities often not found in Sauvignon Blancs from other parts of the world.
So at first when a friend invited me to a Sauvignon Blanc tasting I wasn’t that interested. However, things changed completely when he told me that all the wines were Austrian and there was going to be a heavy emphasis on wines from Südsteiermark! Well now, this sounded like something I didn’t want to miss.
And even if all the wines were not really that much to my liking, the best ones were really wonderful indeed. Sattlerhof is an old favorite of mine - these wines do need both age and aeration, though - whereas Polz was a new name to me, but winning me over quite instantly with their impressive single-vineyard bottlings.
We also scored the wines after the tasting: every attendee had three points to award the wines however they chose, one point for three wines, three points to one wine or one and two points for two wines. These were the end results with my scores in the brackets:
1 - 2019 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Hochgraßnitzberg, 8 pts. (93)
2 - 2019 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Therese Ried Theresienhöhe, 6 pts. (94)
3 - 2019 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Ehrenhausen, 4 pts. (91)
4 - 2018 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Czamilla Czamillonberg, 2 pts. (82)
4 - 2021 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark, 2 pts. (90)
5 - 2017 Weingut Etz Sauvignon Blanc Ried Bleckenweg, 1 pt. (83)
5 - 2021 Weingut Steininger Sauvignon Blanc, 1 pt. (81)
6 - 2019 Sattlerhof Sauvignon Blanc Kranachberg, 0 pts. (91)
6 - 2020 Winkler-Hermaden Sauvignon Blanc Vulkanland Steiermark, 0 pts. (84)
6 - 2021 Wohlmuth Sauvignon Blanc, 0 pts. (69)
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2021 Weingut Steininger Sauvignon Blanc - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal (23.1.2023)
12,5% alcohol, 7 g/l residual sugar and 5,5 g/l acidity.
Pale, neutral, almost colorless whitish-green color. Youthful and varietally correct but also rather generic, vegetal nose of cut grass and some currant leaves, a little bit of ripe gooseberry, light crunchy notes of greencurrants, a hint of passion fruit and a touch of grapefruit. The wine feels quite gentle and somewhat off-dry on the palate with a medium body and quite intense flavors of passion fruit, some lemony citrus fruits, light sharp notes of Granny Smith apple, a little bit of ripe gooseberry, a grassy hint of herby greenness and a vegetal touch of green bell pepper. The rather high acidity lends enough zip and freshness to the wine to keep it balanced despite its somewhat conspicuous residual sugar. The finish is borderline medium-dry yet quite acid-driven with a medium-long aftertaste of lemony citrus fruits, some passion fruit, a little bit of crunchy green currant, light ripe gooseberry tones and a hint of cut grass.
A clean, modern and rather anonymous Sauvignon Blanc with quite a bit of residual sugar, making the wine feel quite off-dry despite its rather brisk acidity. Contrasting this wine with the drier, leaner and less exuberant Südsteiermark Savignon Blancs, it felt like a tropical fruit bomb made in an overt crowdpleaser style. A technically correct wine that could come from anywhere in the world. Offers very little of interest, at least to me. Comes across as somewhat overpriced for the quality at 14,89€. In our tasting the wine received only one point from the eight participants, making it finish on shared fifth place.
(81 points) -
2021 Wohlmuth Sauvignon Blanc - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
Made with Sauvignon Blanc grapes sourced from multiple vineyards. Macerated with the skins for 6-14 hours before pressing. Fermented and aged for half a year in stainless steel tanks. Bottled in late February following the harvest. 12,5% alcohol, 2 g/l residual sugar and 6,5 g/l acidity.
Medium-deep pale green color with faint greenish highlights. The nose feels remarkably neutral and mute with no perceptible aromas - apart from a faint reductive whiff of air balloon rubber. The wine feels broad and quite ripe but also firm and acid-driven on the palate with very neutral flavors of vague white fruits, some stony mineral notes and a hint of white currant juice. The high acidity makes the wine feel pretty structured. The finish is short, neutral and rather flavorless with a light aftertaste of vague appley nuances and a hint of stony minerality.
A remarkably mute wine. Normally I'd say a wine this closed and flavorless suffered from a minute amount of TCA - not enough to make the wine feel corked, but enough to kill all the fruit in the wine. However, as the wine is closed with a screwcap, that explanation seems unlikely. It could also be reduction that just mutes all the aromatics, but the wine didn't really seem to be suffering from any noticeable reduction nor did it open up with air - as opposed to really reductive wines, from which the reduction blows off with aeration. As the wine was only a year old, it seems unlikely that it was past its peak either. As there didn't seem to be anything wrong with the wine, it is possible that this wine was just like it was supposed to be - which would be very disappointing. I'm rating the wine now with a very low score, but if I ever get to re-taste this wine again and it performs better than this, I'll be sure to reconsider my rating. Now this wine was definitely not worth the 17,49€. In our tasting the wine didn't receive any points from any of the eight participants, making it finish on shared sixth (ie. last) place.
(69 points) -
2020 Winkler-Hermaden Sauvignon Blanc Vulkanland Steiermark - Austria, Styria, Vulkanland Steiermark (23.1.2023)
100% organically farmed Sauvignon Blanc sourced from vineyards Winzerkogel, Schlosskogel and Klöcher Hochwarth harvested in late September to early October. Aged on the lees in stainless steel tanks for 5 months. Bottled in February 2021. 12,9% alcohol, 1,1 g/l residual sugar and 5,7 g/l acidity.
Pale lemon yellow color. At first the nose feels surprisingly restrained with light aromas of citrus fruits and sweet white fruits. With some air the nose opens up to express more peachy tones and vague mineral nuances. The wine feels juicy, ripe and somewhat concentrated on the palate with a medium body, a finest hint of CO2 prickle and bright flavors of fresh white fruits, some juicy Golden Delicious apple tones, a little bit of stony minerality, light peachy nuances and a mineral hint of chalky bitterness. The acidity feels quite modest, making the wine feel a bit soft in character. The finish is soft, juicy and quite long with vibrant flavors of Golden Delicious apple, some passion fruit, light stony mineral notes, a little bit of fresh white fruits and a hint of boxwood oil.
What was nice in this wine was that it wasn't as aggressively vegetal as some Sauvignon Blancs can be. However, the elevated level of ripeness here had resulted in a problem from the opposite side of the spectrum: while the wine showed some nice, exotic fruit elements, the level of acidity felt a bit insufficient and the wine lacked sense of freshness and structure. Although the wine doesn't have to be so acidic it dissolves all the enamel from your teeth (which is quite typical for many herbaceous Sauvignon Blancs), the wines still do need quite a bit of acidity - and this wine was lacking a bit in that department. Nevertheless, this was a decent weekday white that was priced according to its quality at 12,98€. In our tasting the wine didn't receive any points from any of the eight participants, making it finish on shared sixth (ie. last) place.
(84 points) -
2019 Sattlerhof Sauvignon Blanc Kranachberg - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
A single-vineyard Sauvignon Blanc. The crushed grapes are cold-soaked with the skins for 12-16 hours, then fermented and aged on the lees in stainless steel tanks for 18 months. 13,5% alcohol, 1 g/l residual sugar and 6,0 g/l acidity.
Pale lime-green color. Somewhat restrained and a bit reductive nose with light aromas of green currants, some asparagus, light grassy green tones, a little bit of lemony citrus fruits and reductive hints of struck match and hard-boiled egg. After lengthy aeration the nose is much more expressive with a sort of "Alpine" mineral feel along with sweeter notes of juicy golden currants and more herbaceous notes of nettles and chopped green chili. The wine is dry, firm and intense on the palate with a medium body and focused yet a bit understated flavors of ripe white peach and crunchy white currant, some spicy red apple tones, a little bit of stony minerality, light extracted waxy nuances, a hint of leesy creaminess and a touch of incisive, steely minerality. There's a tiny bit of warmth from the alcohol, but the overall style is very cool and precise, thanks to the mineral overtones and structured, high acidity. The finish is firm, long and steely with dry but also a bit understated flavors of crunchy white currants, some sweeter notes of golden apples, light concentrated nuances of honey or beeswax, a little bit of apple peel bitterness, a hint of herbaceous greenness and a touch of saline minerality.
A very sophisticated and precise Sauvignon Blanc made in an understated yet concentrated and very mineral style. Just as like a good Chablis, this isn't a wine that'll turn heads - this is just a solid, well-crafted wine that calls for the right time and right place. As the wine is still super youthful and maybe suffering a bit from the reduction, I'd say this wine isn't showing its best in a while - which also explains why this wine didn't really "wow" anybody. I thought the wine was great, but it was more about future potential than immediate drinkability - most other attendees seemed to dismiss the wine altogether. In our tasting the wine didn't receive any points from any of the eight participants, making it finish on shared sixth (ie. last) place. Nevertheless, I'd say this was great value at 19,99€.
(91 points) -
2017 Weingut Etz Sauvignon Blanc Ried Bleckenweg - Austria, Niederösterreich (23.1.2023)
12% alcohol, 4 g/l residual sugar and 6,6 g/l acidity.
Intense, youthful yellow-green color. The nose feels quite green and vegetal with aromas of mulch, some Granny Smith apple, a little bit of white currant, light mineral notes of stone dust and a weedy hint of grass and tilled soil - is there some geosmin here or is the wine just this vegetal? The wine feels quite green and vegetal yet surprisingly ripe at the same time with a moderately full body and a tiniest bit of prickly CO2. There are juicy flavors of ripe green apples, some passion fruit tones, a little bit of grassy greenness, light vegetal notes of currant leaves, a hint of stony minerality and a touch of beeswax. The bright, zippy acidity lends great sense of structure and intensity to the wine. The finish is ripe and juicy yet dry with a long aftertaste of juicy white peach, some passion fruit, light vegetal notes of mulch and freshly mowed law, a hint of green currant and a touch of tart Granny Smith apple.
A divisive wine. It does show good sense of freshness and structure, thanks to its great acidity and mineral overtones that combine really well with the ripe fruit. However, the wine is also surprisingly vegetal - despite all the ripeness - and the green notes seem to be more dominant and, well, vegetal than what is typical even for a very herbaceous style of Sauvignon Blanc. I mean the wine is so green that the nose made me think whether this wine is in sound condition or suffering from geosmin. And I'm not sure even after tasting the wine. This is not really a bad wine, but it really isn't a Sauvignon Blanc I'd buy, either. Feels a bit pricey for the quality at 15,89€. In our tasting the wine received only one point from the eight participants, making it finish on shared fifth place.
(83 points) -
2021 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
Fermented spontaneously and aged in stainless steel tanks. 12,5% alcohol, 1,7 g/l residual sugar and 6,4 g/l acidity.
Rather pale and quite neutral whitish-yellow color with faint lime-green highlights. The nose feels ridiculously big, expressive and rather sweet-toned with bold, exuberant aromas of ripe currants and herbaceous notes of currant leaves, some passion fruit, a little bit of juicy white peach, light tropical fruit candy tones and a mineral hint of wet chalky rocks. The wine feels ripe, crisp and somewhat concentrated on the palate with a sleek medium body and very intense flavors of lemony citrus fruits and tart passion fruit, some crunchy notes of green currant, a little bit of tangy salinity, light steely mineral notes, a sweet hint of juicy white peach and a touch of candied primary fruit. The bracing acidity lends great sense of intensity and structure. The finish is crisp, lively and acid-driven with a long and intense aftertaste of sweet tropical fruits and tart passion fruit, some crunchy Granny Smith apple, light saline mineral tones, a little bit of crunchy green currant and a sweet hint of candied primary fruit.
Well this wine was really a surprise - for just an entry-level wine, this wine packed more intensity, structure and exuberant fruit than most Sauvignon Blancs higher in the quality tier. However, compared to the sense of finesse and harmony of the better Polz wines, this didn't really give much competition - the style here is very in-your-face, making the wine feel quite similar to the extravagant New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. So, in essence, this is sort of a modern crowdpleaser Sauvignon Blanc, but one that is very good at that with enough structure to back all that fruit and, indeed, enough fruit to keep the obfuscating vegetal notes at bay. Priced according to its quality at 23,34€ (and really an excellent purchase at 13,90€, which is the price at the winery's web shop). In our tasting the wine received two points from the eight participants, making it finish on fourth place.
(90 points) -
2019 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Hochgraßnitzberg - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
A single-vineyard Sauvignon Blanc from Ried Hochgraßnitzberg. Fermented spontaneously in oak. Aged in oak large oak foudres. 13,5% alcohol, 1,1 g/l residual sugar and 6,6 g/l acidity.
Deep and quite intense yellow-green color. Somewhat restrained and maybe a bit reductive nose with slightly subdued aromas of ripe green currants, some juicy apple notes, a little bit of leesy creaminess, light mineral notes of wet rocks and a hint of fragrant white flowers. The alcohol shows a tiny bit. The wine feels firm, precise and structured with a medium body and very intense, somewhat concentrated flavors of juicy white peach, some steely mineral notes, a little bit of crunchy green currant, light mineral nuances of wet rocks, a hint of tart lemony citrus fruit and a green touch of chopped nettles. The bracing acidity lends great sense of freshness and structure to the wine. The finish is firm, brisk and lively with a long, dry aftertaste of ripe red apples and some tart passion fruit tones, a little bit of lemony citrus fruit, light stony mineral notes, a hint of tangy salinity and a touch of creamy oak.
An excellent, crisp and structure-driven Sauvignon Blanc that is still super young and still quite nervous in nature. However, the wine feels like it is built for aging, so most likely this wine will keep in aging and improving for years more - and most likely it will take several years in a cellar before the somewhat closed nose opens up and the lean, tightly-coiled structure starts to unwind. This wine was really a big leap up from the basic regional and village-level Sauvignon Blancs of Polz. A terrific and very promising wine; in our tasting it received eight points from the eight participants, making it finish on first place. The wine might not be that affordable at 39,33€, but it does deliver for the price. Highly recommended.
(93 points) -
2019 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Ehrenhausen - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
The village-level Ortswein Sauvignon Blanc of Polz. Fermented spontaneously in oak. Aged in oak large oak foudres. 13% alcohol.
Pale yellow color. The nose feels nuanced and wonderfully intense with layered aromas of lemony citrus fruits, some passion fruit, light creamy oak tones, a little bit of salty liquorice powder, a hint of vanilla custard and a smoky touch of flinty reduction. The wine feels broad, juicy and quite concentrated with layered flavors of fresh white peach, some creamy oak tones, a little bit of flinty smoke, light sweet notes of apple jam, a hint of vanilla and a touch of saline minerality. The medium-to-moderately high acidity feels a bit modest for a Sauvignon Blanc; it keeps the wine in balance, but doesn't lend much zip or freshness to the wine. The finish is rich, juicy and a bit round with a moderately long aftertaste of stony minerality, some crunchy white currant, light woody notes of savory oak spice, light sweeter notes of white peach, a hint of vanilla and a touch of zesty citrus fruit.
A nuanced, rich and somewhat Burgundian Sauvignon Blanc that shows good sense of complexity and elegance. However, the wine is surprisingly lacking in acidity - something I didn't expect from a Südsteiermark Sauvignon Blanc. Also the vanilla tones stick out a bit at times, even if the other oak characteristics remain quite steadily in the background. All in all, this wine showed more depth, finesse and complexity than the regular Südsteiermark Sauvignon Blanc of Polz, coming across as a bit more impressive in character, but with its somewhat softer acidity and a bit clumsy oak influence didn't manage to reach the heights of the single-vineyard bottlings, which are on a class of their own. Nevertheless, this was a enjoyable, well-crafted Sauvignon Blanc that was priced according to its quality at 26,19€. In our tasting the wine received four points from the eight participants, making it finish on third place.
(91 points) -
2019 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Therese Ried Theresienhöhe - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
A single-vineyard Sauvignon Blanc from Ried Theresienhöhe. Fermented spontaneously and aged in stainless steel tanks. 13% alcohol, 1,1 g/l residual sugar and 7,1 g/l acidity.
Pale yellow-green color. The nose feels ripe and quite sweet-toned but also a bit reticent with aromas of golden currants and Granny Smith apple, some green notes of currant leaves, a little bit of steely minerality, light zesty notes of grated lemon rind, a mineral hint of wet rocks and a touch of leesy creaminess. The wine is crisp, racy and very intense on the palate with a medium body and very focused flavors of tart Granny Smith apple and lemony citrus fruits, some steely mineral tones, a little bit of crunchy golden currants with nuances of currant leaves, light saline notes, hint of passion fruit and a touch of leesy creaminess. The bracing acidity lends electric energy and remarkable sense of structure to the wine. The finish is long, firm and structured with a dry, focused aftertaste of ripe white currants, some lemony citrus notes, a little bit of steely minerality, light green nuances of currant leaves and nettles, a leesy hint of creaminess and a touch of tart passion fruit.
A remarkably fresh, focused and structured Sauvignon Blanc that seems to be quite ripe, yet that ripeness doesn't really translate into sweetness or sense of weight. The wine is still extremely youthful and nervous, but the potential is still shining through brightly. It's possible the 2019 Hochgrassnitzberg - that we tasted next to this wine - might become even better with enough aging, but at the moment this wine felt even more impressive in comparison. In a tasting of five Polz wines, this was easily my favorite and also among crowd favorites: it received six points from the eight participants, making it finish on second place. At 19,89€ this was really a bargain.
(94 points) -
2018 Polz Sauvignon Blanc Czamilla Czamillonberg - Austria, Styria, Südsteiermark (23.1.2023)
A single-vineyard Sauvignon Blanc from Ried Czamillonberg. Fermented spontaneously in oak. Aged in oak large oak foudres. 13,5% alcohol, 1,2 g/l residual sugar and 4,3 g/l acidity.
Pale straw yellow color. Odd, pungent and noticeably green-toned nose with herby aromas of chamomile and pilsner-like hop notes (both qualities I usually find in a Northern Rhône white, not in a Sauvignon Blanc), followed by notes of savory spices, some fresh apple and white peach tones, a little bit of lambic-like hay and old leather and a hint of roasted nuts. The wine feels big, broad and heavy on the palate with a full body and juicy, sweet-toned flavors of apple jam and very ripe white peach, some lambic-like phenolic spice and smoky nuances suggesting brett, light creamy tones, a little bit of waxy funk, a hint of honeycomb and a touch of chamomile and herby spices. The modest medium acidity doesn't give much energy to the wine, making the overall feel rather fat and blowzy, lacking precision and structure. The finish is broad, waxy and sweet-toned with a lush, somewhat dull aftertaste of almost overripe peach, some chamomile tones, a little bit of smoky phenolic character, light rich honeyed nuances, a hint of creamy oak and a touch of leathery funk.
Ugh. This was a huge, dull and ponderous effort that had nothing to do with the other Polz Sauvignon Blancs we tasted. I was confused whether this wine was even made by the same producer or from the same grape variety, but indeed, the bottle said "Polz" and "Sauvignon Blanc". It's very rarely I've seen such a stark contrast between two consecutive vintages - the 2019s were all brisk, zippy and showing almost bracing acidity, whereas this was huge, sweet-toned and badly wanting for acidity. Curiously there was also a faint touch of bretty funk, which actually added a nice, subtle layer of complexity to the flavors - ie. not really obfuscating anything. However, this didn't really manage to save the wine. In our tasting the wine received two points from the eight participants, making it finish on fourth place. Not worth the price at 26,19€.
(82 points)
Posted from CellarTracker
Other dry white Bordeaux, too.
