Having recently bottled the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc we thought we should compare the various vintages of The Berrio Sauvignon Blanc. Whilst all the vintages are definitely refreshing and more-ish – the complexity of the 2009 seems clearer. Does that make it less complex?

As discussed in “Secrets of the Soil” the complexity of a wine is the multitude of nuances that are revealed as you drink it. The more complex the wine (i.e. the more nuances) the more intriguing it is.

It seems that as time passes with each vintage, the individual nuances in our Sauvignon Blanc become more distinct, the notes clearer and more identifiable. In earlier vintages, there was a ‘hint’ of the hallmark Elim passion fruit flavor; this has developed into a very distinctive ‘burst’ in the 2007 vintage.  The 2005 vintage had lots of herbal notes but it was difficult to identify exactly which herbs you were experiencing, with the 2008 vintage those notes were clearer and you can clearly identify green fig leaves for example.


So, what I’ve been contemplating in comparing the various vintages of The Berrio Sauvignon Blanc, is whether the degree to which the nuances can be identified influences the complexity of a wine.

Is a wine more fascinating and captivating and more-ish when the nuances are distinctive or when they are not?

What do you think? Let us know – if you have various vintages do a vertical tasting – it’s really interesting, and make sure you include the 2008 vintage which received 4 ½ stars from Mr Platter this year.