The Wines

"A washing line of fresh linen, spring daisies and gently waving buffalo grass. There is lemon posset, limestone, chalk and grapefruit skin. Citrus and white stone fruit flavours centre deeply in the mid-palate, with a tantalising amount of fresh fruit sweetness and cascading and yet tapered acidity. This is just a top-notch white wine, full taste the sandy dry mineral tones, consider the palate length and quality and you know you can only be drinking Dog Point from their esteemed Wairau sites in Marlborough. The savoury cream tones add further complexity and finesse. This is a global benchmark for sauvignon blanc."

"The 2024 Sauvignon Blanc leads with a distinct nose of freshly picked curry leaf, crushed sea shells, lemon zest, asphalt, mustard seed, dried coriander/coriander seed and white flesh orchard fruit. This is powerfully fruited, has great energy and drive and unsurprisingly, offers great pleasure and satisfying drinking. This is a very smart, savory wine here."                                                        

"Rich aroma of fresh pea pod, smoky grapefruit and clementine. Initially showing a little less obvious smoky/flinty reduction than in some vintages though this character shows more as the wine opens in the glass. Aromatic on the palate, too, with green fruits, clementine and fresh herbs and a mouth-watering salty aftertaste. Masses of acid tension to balance the ripe fruit, long smoky/flinty aftertaste. This is a decisive style of NZ SB but it is head and shoulders above the other 2024s in this line up, not just in complexity but also in depth of fruit."

"The youthful 2024 has all the signs of a top vintage. Bright, light lemon/green, it is mouthfilling, sweet-fruited and tightly structured, with deep, vigorous, passionfruit/lime flavours, good acid spine and a dry, sustained finish."

"Back in March in my MoneyWeek column, I wrote up the 2023 vintage of this wine, which is a superb creation in its own right, and the 2024 vintage was, in turn, the pick of this dozen. It looked superb straight out of the bottle, with a little more weight and presence than the others, and it had real flair and energy. Then, it continued to blossom over two days while the others faded. Once again, there were none of the unwanted canned fruit salad or tropical notes that I despise, and I was left thinking of some of the more textural and expressive Pouilly-Fumes that appeal to me, such is the control and formality that Dog Point shows on its finish."                         

"An excellent bouquet and palate with scents and flavours of citrus and nettles, fresh sage and grapefruit, apple and a layer of green passionfruit fresh lychee nut. Crisp and dry with plenty of mouthfeel, saline qualities and freshness. Some time on lees adds to the texture and length. Delicious, fresh, balanced and well made."

"An absolute stand-out wine from the 2024 vintage, this has all of the telltale Dog Point flinty reduction which seems to mark all of their wines. This is made from Dog Point's organic parcels and is a wine which has a good track record of ageing in the mid-term. Distinctive reduction on the nose leads to quite a structured palate with layered complexity over a ripe core of apple. Young, tight and with very good concentration, this is classic, displaying lovely balance and length on the pure, precise finish where a touch of minerality emerges."

"This is excellent, as always, showing flint, sliced lemons and fresh green melon. Some Thai basil too. Medium body, crisp acidity and lots of fruit at the end but with focus and tension."

"Dog Point's whites are known for their distinctive flinty, reductive characters that sometimes go too far. But lately, this producer has reined it in, striking the perfect balance so that the white peach and guava fruit shine, too. There's chalky, pithy textural components and a tautness that suggests a happy few years of aging. If drinking now, a little aeration in glass won't hurt."

"Stunning, complex and distinctive, with notes of flint and smoky litsea oil giving way to plump and juicy mango, peach and lemon curd flavors. Dried pineapple, lemon oil and fresh ginger elements are sleek and mouthwatering, with a white tea detail on the finish."

"The 2024 Sauvignon Blanc is far from the wham-bam mass-produced Marlborough style. This is relatively restrained and textural, with far lower yields, hand-harvesting and whole bunch-pressing before most of the wine went through an indigenous fermentation. On first opening, there's a struck match character that needs some air to blow off to reveal lemon and lime, tangy green characters of nettles. It's balanced and seamless, exuding a sense of calm in the mouth with an attractive, lightly grippy texture on the refreshing finish."

Layers of crushed stones, smoked almonds, green apples, lemon pith, white pepper, licorice and oyster shells. It’s so powerful and concentrated. Tightly wound and phenolic with a medium body and sharp acidity. Intense, and just keeps going. Always a sophisticated and complex sauvignon blanc.

Stunning with a complex, aromatic mix of beeswax, litsea oil, vetiver and honeysuckle notes up front, followed by a ripe peach, melon and lemon curd flavors at the juicy core. Reveals whiffs of grilled lemon and smoke that swirl around the flavors, as well as a hint of crushed rock minerality on a supple, seamless frame. Gains momentum on the epic finish. 

Very, very muted oak gives this wine structure rather than flavour. Firm and chalky-textured with the same bright fruit that characterises their regular, earlier release of Sauvignon Blanc. Just more undertow…and ageing potential. Very impressive. 

This is a single organic vineyard and is vinified in older French oak. Lively, mineral and stony with powerful citrus fruit and some spicy hints. This has really nice vibrancy and is still very primary, with a zesty edge to it.

The 2020 Section 94 shows a perponderence of yellow fruits, exotic spices, layers of cloves, star anise and fennel, with white cloth and beeswax. It’s a powerful, tightly coiled wine of great length and complexity. These evolve favourably in the future, while you allow this to age and settle. This is a very impressive wine

The 2020 Sauvignon Blanc Section 94 continues to be a defined and relatively reductive interpretation of the variety with a concentrated core of compact fruit meeting struck match, florals, and toasted citrus. A little more subtle than previous vintages which is welcome. Powerful, intense and firm.

"This classy wine is estate-grown and hand-picked on the south side of the Wairau Valley, fermented and matured for 18 months in French oak barriques (typically 10 per cent new), and given a full, softening malolactic fermentation. The 2022 vintage (*****) was harvested from vines averaging 28-years-old.  Bright, light lemon/green, it is still a baby, but already approachable. Mouthfilling, vibrantly fruity and savoury, it has rich stonefruit flavours, gently seasoned with biscuity oak, lively acidity and a tight, finely poised finish.  Best drinking 2027+. Certified organic."

"The '22 vintage wasn't particularly easy, but the intent and meticulous attention of viticulturists shines bright in the best wines. The '22 is on fire, with cherry compote, blue plum skin and rhubarb stem. The selected 25% whole bunch adds just the right amount of sinewy, woodsy herbs backed by savoury potting clay and tree bark. Red lingonberries pop like caviar on the mid-palate and the staying power of graceful but astute tannins is why this wine will age like a dream. This is built for almost any medium rare meat you can throw at it - lamb, game or grass-fed beef. It's a wine for the very best crystal and only the best of friends for company. Stunning."

"This classy, finely structured red is estate-grown on the south side of the Wairau Valley, hand-picked and matured for 18 months in French oak barriques. The 2022 vintage has a fragrant, savoury, youthful bouquet. Full, bright ruby, it has layers of berry, plum, spice and nut flavours, fresh acidity, and very impressive harmony, complexity and length."

"Strawberries, flint, caramel, minerals and terra-cotta character, as well as fresh tea. Medium-bodied, this has crunchy fruit, crushed flowers and a fine and polished finish. Delicate and delicious with some weight."

"The 2022 Pinot Noir leads with black cherry and star anise, strawberry top and a hint of pomegranate molasses. The wine is light and chalky, with attractive clarity in the glass and brilliant length through the finish. There is a dusting of cocoa and licorice at the edges of the aromas. It’s a beautiful wine, one that ages slowly and gracefully over the decades. The tannins here are grippy and yet pulverized in structure; they serve to cup and cradle the fruit, never intrude but forever guiding."

"This wine encapsulates the outstanding beauty, weight, silky texture and supple expression of Pinot Noir from the sun drenched clay hill slopes of Marlborough’s Southern Valleys. Aromas of fresh red fruits, bright fresh acidity and a well matched medium body all suggest a long life ahead for this new release Pinot Noir."

"Blackberry, cola and dark smoky notes reluctantly emerge on the nose of this young, closed wine. The palate is equally restrained; the fairly concentrated dark fruit only appearing towards the back as it rises above the serious, chocolaty tannins and wood. Compact, really quite oaky and backward, this does have sneaky length and under the fine structure is plenty of promise and perfume. Give it a couple of years in the cellar to integrate and watch it bloom."

"Bright, fresh wine with typical varietal/regional characters including capsicum, gooseberry, lemongrass and passionfruit. Appealing purity with a perfect sweet/sour balance. A pleasure to taste."

"Intense, oak-matured sauvignon blanc with lemongrass, oyster shell, ginger, spicy oak and nutty yeast lees flavours. Bright, complex and satisfying wine that takes Marlborough sauvignon to a different level."

"Alluring scents of ripe citrus and apple, peach, quince and a touch of golden kiwifruit Fabulous bouquet and palate with aromas of fresh peach and gun-flint minerality, new and used barrel with a nutty cashew complexity, baked apple and quince. Delicious, fresh and dry with a satin touch, back bone of acidity and flavours of barrel, flint, mineral and oak. Fine tannins, a lengthy finish and delicious complexity."

"Intense, mouthwatering chardonnay with lime, pineapple, oyster shell/mineral, hazelnut and subtle spicy oak flavours. Delicious high-energy wine in a rather Chablis-esque style with purity and power."

"Intense, appealing pinot noir with subtle floral aromas together with concentrated red berry, dark chocolate, liquorice, wood smoke and spicy oak flavours. Powerful wine with obvious cellaring potential."

"Hand-picked from its own vineyards in Marlborough, Dog Point's Sauvignon is bright, crisp and super-fresh, more typical in Marlborough style than the barrel-fermented 'Section 94' cuvee, with huge punch and verve. Passionfruit is there, with tropical notes suggesting lychee and guava, a touch of capsicum, but really all about the fruit. In the mouth the texture has some richness and mealiness to it, the citrus blast of the acidity balanced perfectly against the more unctuous, tropical fruit into a dry and beautifully balanced finish. Typical and yet not, this is a fine example of Marlborough's unique Sauvignon style."