"Mud House Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2009 has just caught its fourth gold medal from as many shows.  It is one of the stars of the vintage..." Sue Courtney.

RATED AMONG THE TOP 12 NZ SAUVIGNON BLANC WINES

95 POINTS

5 STARS

"Pungent wine with fresh and vibrant gooseberry, red capsicum and lemongrass flavours.  Attractive soft, almost sweet acidity balances a suggestion of residual sugar.  Lovely delicacy.  A charming, gentle wine with a lingering finish.  This is made in relatively large volumes.  To produce a sauvignon blanc of this quality on a large scale is a significant achievement, requiring restrained cropping levels and commitment to quality from the beginning to end"

Quality 4.5 stars.  Value 4.5 stars

"Phew - this is intense - imagine ripping a juicy passionfruit in half and getting a whif of the skin mixing with the pulp - now that's my first impression of this wine.  Mixed together with fantastic herbs and grapefruit flavours, it's no wonder this wine was awarded the championship wine at the 2009 Liquorland Top 100 International Wine Competition."
 

SAVVIE FOR SEAFOOD

"Each year an intrepid band of judges in the United States sips and slurps its way through hundreds of wine samples and a similar number of oysters in search of the perfect partnership. I assume they don't actually eat all the oysters.
Inevitably, they choose sauvignon blanc as the perfect wine for oysters. I'm not surprised. Sauvignon blanc is the supreme choice for just about every seafood dish imaginable. I'm not making this up. When I sip Mud House 2009 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with Martin Bosley's brilliant paua and kina recipes, I hear a celestial choir singing the "Hallelujah Chorus". It's not a great match; it's an absolutely brilliant match.
Mud House 2009 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc deservedly earned a gold medal at the Air New Zealand Wine Awards. This wonderfully pungent wine has sufficient strength of flavour and enough tangy acidity to handle the assertive flavours of paua and kina. When you've drained the glass, put it to your ear, I swear you can hear the sea. How good is that?

92-93 POINTS – Excellent.

This is stunning Savvy Blanc. The aromatics are evocative and positively dazzling. It just leaps tropical and crisp citrus fruit from the glass, sending the glorious fruit characters all over the place. The fresh clear deep and distinctiveness of the wine says Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand Savvy Blanc at that all over. It delivers deliciousness and is moreish to the extreme.
Food Match: Roast Pork.
Alc: 13.0%

"Already this wine has a Wine of Show award to its credit and the approval of sauvignon blanc fans who like them fuller, passionfruit-driven and with twists of citrus.  Juicy, mouthwatering acidity.  Top stuff." Warren Barton.

"From NZ's Marlborough comes a savi with 'a slightly sweaty style'.  It has a 'tickle' of sweetness and good length".

93 POINTS

"Pungent wine with fresh and vibrant gooseberry, red capsicum and lemongrass flavours.  Delicate and charming with a lingering finish."

"It was the powerfully pungent wines made from New Zealand's leading variety, sauvignon blanc, that switched the world on to the potential of our other aromatics.  These may be on the up, but we still make far more sauvignon blanc than any other variety.  This is a classic and classy example from Mud House that's an explosion of vibrant gooseberry, passionfruit and fresh Mediterranean herbs propelled by zingy citrus"

RANKED NO. 10 OUT OF TOP 10 2009 SAUVIGNON BLANC'S     5 STARS

"It ticks all the boxes.  In New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 101, this would be top of the class," said Nick Stock.  A pungent overture gives way to capsicum- and kaffir-lime-infused palate and a delicate finish.  Served with steamed clams.

Note: Cuisine Magazine December 2009 Issue ranked our reserve tier Sauvignon Blanc as the No.1 2009 Sauvignon Blanc wine.   Check out 2009 Mud House Swan Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc at  http://www.mudhouse.co.nz/wines/mudhouse-swan/tastingnote.aspx?WiID=78

"Arguably one of the best examples around, a fact underlined by its Air New Zealand Wine Awards gold medal. More tropical notes on the nose with a tropical-citrus palate and juicy acidity under well balanced fruit".

93 POINTS

"This is a slightly sweaty style with garden salad aromas and some lemon-citrus nuances.  Intense and alive in the mouth, it has superior concentration and while there's a tickle of sweetness, the balance and length are exemplary." Huon Hooke

FOOD: Grilled flathead with lemon juice.

5 OUT OF 5 STARS
*BEST UNDER $20*

"A powerful, juicy wine with hints of dusty greywacke, bursting with fruit - gold and green kiwi and passionfruit, but held in tight rein with a mouthwateringly crisp, long finish."

Delicious and Good value

"Pungently perfumed with pea pods, white pepper, watercress and passionfruit.  It's crisp and loaded with lemon, lime and tropical zestiness".

SCORE: 90 - 92 POINTS

"This has plenty of passionfruit on the nose, fresh and lively.  The palate has the same fresh passionfruit pulp too - really quite rich and full-flavoured, with a fresh river of acid running right throughout"

"I find many New Zealand Sauvignon's to be almost oppressively fruit laden. The Mud House though is much more subtle and at a recent tasting we liked it best because of it's good balance of leafy flavour with a pleasing round finish."

Unmistakeably Kiwi from the first pour. This is real varietal Savvy Blanc from the home of it across the seas. Upfront fresh and green – its youthfulness abounds and ensues with gooseberries, a lovely herbalness, hints of tinned asparagus and green apples all shining through. Dry and crisp in its acidity, the mix of fruit carries through to the palate nicely and evenly with a lingering freshness that tantalises and zests those tastebuds. Try it with risotto with prawns and peas.
Drink Now to 2011. About $22. Alc – 13.0%. 88/100 – Very Good.

Find more at http://www.paulippolito.com.au/

"I tried the Sauvignon Blanc 2008 recently which was a perfect expression of summer, but with an extra dollop of fruit. The aroma was floral and spicy with just a hint of elderflower. Great legs in the glass showing extra weight of ripe fruit, long on the palate with a clean vibrant edge and a rich fruit driven finish.  We drank it with a light chicken salad with a Pesto dressing. The nutty texture of the pesto was a great foil for the acidity of the Sauvignon Blanc. Highly recommended 4 stars decanter magazine seem very worthily awarded in my opinion".  Andrew Coghlan, MD

A short little story about a wine that makes me giddy…
Mud House Sauvignon Blanc, from New Zealand, oh so pretty…
Your bright tings of grapefruit that flourish on my tongue;
the crispness of lemon and lime are fresh and feel so young!
You’re passionate, light and clean; a joy to hold,
outside, at the beach, at a party or in my home.
If you see this fine little dandy at your wine shop of choice,
make sure to grab a bottle and get ready to rejoice! ($10 - $15/ btl….great deal!)
Cheers!
-Kronick Wino
 

A STAND-OUT among dozens of recent savblanc releases from NZ's Marlborough, this was a major award winner at the 2008 Sydney International Wine Competition. Mud House was founded in 1996, aiming to create vineyards in regions where various grape varieties are especially suited. There is also a rich and satisfying 2008 pinot gris, from NZ's South Island, under this label. Stockists 1800 677 443. 

89 POINTS out of 100
"A lush, tropical style of Sauvignon, combining peach and guava aromas with passion fruit flavors. This is delicious right now for its immediate fruit, ample weight and slightly creamy texture." Joe Czerwinski.

87 Points out of 100
"Light and fragrant, this is zippy with lime and passion fruit flavors, echoing nicely on the finish. Drink now. 50,000 cases made."

This is made from fruit sources from a number of sub-regions throughout Marlborough including Upper. Lower and Mid Wairau and Awatere. It's won numerous awards: Blue-Gold Award, Sydney International Wine Competition 2009: and Top 100 Wines of the Sydney International Wine Competition 2009. Match it with twice cooked goat cheese soufflé.

16.5/20-points.   Drink 2008-09
Fresh, lightly perfumed, some youthful pear drop aromas. Clean and minerally, taut and fresh with a long, dry finish. 13% Alc. Jancis Robinson.

4 STARS out of 5
"You know you're in Marlborough from the first sniff. Textbook pungency and reciness are backed by a well armed flavour attack of citrus, asparagus and currants."

5 STARS out of 5
“Distinctive gooseberry and passionfruit aromas fill the glass. Excellent pungent and spicy palate that is well weighted with powerful tropical varietal flavours. A very well made wine.”

"Punchy, clearly herbaceous style with crisp acidity and green capsicum notes to the fore, fresh, lively and strong."

3 1/2 Stars, 87/100

Leafy and gravel-scented wine, it has some wild mountain herbs too. The palate is rich, this has juicy ripeness, plenty of tropical fruits and looks a bit thick and heavy, needs a good chill to tighten it up.

"Vibrant and intense, with fine focus to grass, grapefruit-lime and subtle guava flavors. Lead pencil extends through the finish. Drink now. 35,000 cases made. –DS"

An excerpt taken from Simon's blog: http://drinkingoutsidethebox.blogspot.com/2008/03/day-one-in-big-bottle-house.html

"Jill will be drinking whatever she likes. Tonight she's on Mud House 2007 Sauvignon Blanc which is a cracker - watch out for it in the Wine & Spirit First Taste column sometime soon."

Some flintiness on the nose, followed by fresh fruit flavours of gooseberry, kiwi and pear, with some grassiness, backed up with good acidity and finishing on a fresh note.  €16.99.  Available from Made About Wine, Moycullen, Co Galway;  Harvest Off Licence, Oranmore, Galway, Redmonds of Ranelagh and the Northern Ireland -based jn-wine.com

Some flintiness on the nose, followed by fresh fruit flavours of gooseberry, kiwi and pear, with some grassiness, backed up with good acidity and finishing on a fresh note.

Score: 17 ½
Alcohol: 13%
Price: $19
Lemon green. Bouquet is vividly sauvignon, but at a slightly less ripe point than the Swan wine, with some aromatics of green and yellow capsicum entering the picture. Palate has a lot of flavour and good concentration, showing some Sancerre suggestions in its English gooseberry, plus Marlborough black passionfruit. It seems fractionally drier than the Swan variant, adding to the European comparison. It is however beautifully clean. Cellar 1 – 3 years. GK 02/08
 

4 Stars
Old-style nose - strong and pungent. Very interesting, deep and complex animal skin palate with fresh apple. Long and mouth filling, full of character £9.99; Boo, Dby, Hax, P&S, WFM

3 Stars

Fresh and lively, with melon, capsicum and passionfruit flavours showing good depth and a clean, crisp finish.

One of the first 2007 sauvignon blancs I tasted and one whose memory has lingered pleasantly even since sampling more of the first wave of releases from this promising vintage.  Its flavours are on the greener spectrum, with lip smacking lashings of gooseberries, herbs and capsicum.  From New World, Woolworths, Foodtown, Wine Direct, Liquor King, Fine Wine Deliver Company.

Body: medium-bodied, punchy and bright

Alcohol: 13.0%

Drink: now

The 2007 sauvignons are beginning to appear on the wine shelves and look really fresh and vibrant.  This Marlborough wine has pungent passionfruit, gooseberry, and grassy aromas and has a full throttle, punchy, fruity flavour with a dry, lingering finish.  Really delicious.

"Mud House 2006 [Sauvignon Blanc]...worthy of a spot at your Christmas barbecue"