This is richly flavoured and textured Riesling. Apple pie, ginger, pear and ripe lemon aromatics lead to a dry but dense, silky palate and a tonicy, fresh finish. Fruit came from the Domain Road vineyard in Bannockburn, was hand picked and wild yeast fermented, with a small proportion of skin contact. The wine was aged for 9 months in stainless steel and neutral oak, before bottling without fining or filtration.

In a short space of time, Sato Wines have gained quite the following, and with good reason, the wines  are so thoroughly engaging. Established in Central Otago in 2009, Yoshiaki and Kyoko Sato produced their first Pinot Noir with purchased organic fruit. In 2016 they planted their own 3.2 hectare vineyard in Pisa, in the Cromwell Basin. From the outset they’ve had a very clear vision for how they want to produce wine. 

“We believe grape vines need to be grown in an organic way, preferably a biodynamic way, and grapes have to be transformed to wine with minimal intervention by human hand, chemicals or additives. In this way, we consider a natural microbiological balance is maintained in the vineyard, and the wine in process in the winery so that the real character of the terroir, where the grape vines grow, is truly expressed in a pure manner”.