2014 Palatine Hills Neufeld Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc

Palatine Hills 2014 Neufeld Vineyard Sauvignon BlancA tale of two wines in one bottle…

We previously rated this wine in 2016, so this review represents a sequel of sorts, to see how the wine could have evolved. In short, we experienced two quite distinctive wines in this single offering.

Straight out of the fridge, this white wine showed characteristics of Pinot Grigio, with a sweet, white peach and white grapefruit rind nose, as well as a herbaceous hint on the back. Dry on the palate, it offered minerals (slate), sour, citrus rind, with a hint of green.

When it approached the ideal serving temperature (7-10 degrees Celcius), its true Sauvignon Blanc character emerged. We enjoyed asparagus and mineral notes in the nose, as well as minerals and herbaceous flavours in the mouth, which endured in the finish, as did white grapefruit rind.

This wine paired very well with butter chicken, as well as lemon and roasted garlic couscous, which brought out the wine’s floral and fruity character. Interestingly, when paired with Easter chocolate (dark and milk chocolate Ferrero eggs, to be precise), the green characteristic of Sauvignon Blanc shone through.

So, if you enjoy Sauvignon Blanc in the classic sense, make sure to serve this white at the right temperature! Regardless, this wine comes across as friendly in the sense that it doesn’t pack the typical back-end punch of the varietal. In short, we enjoyed it as much today as we did in 2016.

For a wine in the $15-$20 range, this white wine presents very good value for the quality.

Rating (from 70 to 100): 89/100

Value: 3.5/5

The Bottle Details…

Name: Neufeld Vineyard (NV) Sauvignon Blanc

Vintage: 2014

Producer: Palatine Hills Estate Winery

Region/Country: VQA Niagara Lakeshore

Grape Varietals: Sauvignon Blanc

Alcohol content: 13.5%

Consumed: At home on one of the first days of spring.

Recommended By: Jeff Innes, then winemaker at Palatine Hills, as one of the offerings we tried during a memorable tasting.

Cost: Unknown, although the 2015 cost $16.25 at the LCBO.

Bottle Presentation: Clean, simple, monochrome label, with a nice silver topographic touch.

The Tasting Details…

Appearance: Pale lemon

Nose: A medium nose, which offered asparagus, herbaceous, and citrus rind notes.

Taste: A dry, medium-bodied wine, with high acidity and minimal tannins, as expected. Prominent flavours included minerals (slate) and citrus rind, with some herbaceous notes.

Finish: A medium finish comprised of minerals and grapefruit rind.

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