2024 Stefano Lubiana Sauvignon Blanc

Our certified biodynamic vineyard (11317) faces north, the site overlooks the eastern bank of the Derwent River and benefits from its capacity to cool the occassional northerly summer winds. Although we are 20km from the ocean, we get a mixture of maritime climatic conditions flowing up the Derwent River, we also experience continental conditions flowing down from the central highlands, this is unique to us here in the Derwent Valley.

The Sauvignon Blanc plot was planted in 1996 by Monique and Steve Lubiana, these old vines provide more concerntration and complexity resulting in a well rounded mouthfeel. Sauvignon Blanc vines are grown here on soil where fossils were deposited millions of years ago and silt, a by-product of the Derwent River’s flow eroding its Western bank over a millennia. This diversity contributes to the unique elements of our gravelly, sandy, loamy terroir of our plot.

Hand picked grapes are processed immediately. All fruit is pressed first then barrelled by gravity to the underground cellar. The juice, on full solids, fills our Austrian oak foudres and a clay amphora stored in our naturally cool and calm underground cellar. The wine matures in these conditions until it is transferred to tank a month prior to bottling. This is where we allow the Sauviugnon Blanc to settle before gentle filtration and bottling in December 2024.

The 2024 growing season was cool with a drier than average winter and spring. This was followed by a warm and overcast summer with a major rain event of 20mm in the second week of January 2024. Thereafter, the season was consistently warm which meant vintage was brought forward compared to the previous four years of La Niña. Our Sauvignon Blanc grapes were picked by our vineyard team on the 13th of March 2024. Diligant work in the vineyard meant the quality of this years grapes were of excellent quality and had high concentration of flavour. – Stefano Lubiana