Settlement Sauvignon Blanc 2023

Passionfruit, gooseberry, lively acid, crisp finish. The Marlborough template, well-executed — no surprises.

Settlement makes one Sauvignon Blanc, from its Heritage Vineyard in the Wairau River Valley. The vines went in between 1990 and 1995 on free-draining silt and clay loams over a clay subsoil, laid down by old river floods. Organic conversion started in 2009 and the block was fully certified in 2012.

The 2023 season was cool and wet through spring and summer, with a near-frost in March. Slow ripening kept the vines healthy and the fruit clean at harvest. The juice settled for three days, then 15 percent fermented in old French oak with the rest in stainless steel. It spent five months in tank and was bottled without filtration, which gives it more texture than a standard Marlborough pour.

Steve Planthaber built Settlement around four wines from four organic parcels, made with a light hand. Serve it cold with oysters or goat's cheese on toast.