Wine Spotlight: Eva Pemper 2021 Sauvignon Blanc
Never has a “flightless bird” soared so high above the competition. This was the first thing I felt when tasting Eva Pemper’s 2021 Sauvignon Blanc out of Marlborough, New Zealand. While famous for their flightless bird, the Kiwi, this winemaker from down under is clearly on her way to the top of the market.
Just recently, I had the pleasure of connecting with Eva, an up-and-coming winemaker in New Zealand, but originally from Croatia! Eva’s parents were winemakers and taught her the old-world traditions that continue to make wine from Europe the benchmark around the world. However, Eva branched out and started her own winery in not only the New World, but a place that has rocked the wine industry since its Sauvignon Blanc has shifted the paradigm of what we “thought” Sauvignon Blanc should be. After our initial conversations, and sharing that I LOVE Sauvignon Blanc from NZ, Eva was gracious enough to send me a bottle to try, and I have not been more excited for a tasting since driving through Alsace years ago.
Upon opening the 94-point, single vineyard crafted wine, I immediately noticed the fragrant aroma stemming from my glass and knew that a wider rimmed glass was necessary to truly experience how beautiful this wine was. The wine produces a lovely, bold, yet non-intrusive nose of apricots and white flowers, with a fresh floral and coastal feel. On the palette, bell peppers, green apples, and a slight minerality which starts strong as it hits your tongue but fades into a smooth medium finish and a mouthwatering quality. Dry and light bodied with perfectly balanced acidity that highlights the vineyard’s fruit while delivering the bold taste we have come to know of a NZ Sauv Blanc. Even amongst the well-known New Zealand wines such as Wairau River, Cloudy Bay, or Esk Valley, Eva’s wine stands above the rest, offering an incredibly vibrant yet familiar experience in a high-quality bottle destined to top her region.
“The Eva Pemper brand is a product of many wonderful things that came together and became one. Continuing my family’s legacy and sharing our story on the other side of the world is the core of my wines. I feel very special to be able to do that from New Zealand.” Eva continues: “One of the fundamental inspirations of Eva Pemper wine is the significant influence of Croatian heritage in New Zealand’s wine industry. This history saw families coming here from Croatia over a hundred years ago with just their suitcases, following their dream. Today this dream has resulted in some of New Zealand’s highest profile wine industry people and brands that are well known and respected here and around the world.”
Another interesting fact about the 2021 vintages from New Zealand, is how small quantity they were. “The 2021 harvest, while of exceptional quality, was 19% smaller than the previous year. New Zealand wine sales for 2021 were 324 million litres, meaning they were 48 million litres more than was actually produced in the 2021 vintage” says Philip Gregan, CEO of New Zealand Winegrowers. This clearly shows the popularity and growing interest in NZ wines and the impression they are making around the world.
While Eva’s wines are not immediately available internationally, she does import through Alexandria, VA and I will be a continual advocate to get her bottles to the west coast as soon as possible. Priced at $25, this high-quality wine drinks perfectly 2-3 years from vintage (which luckily is now) and pairs well with seafoods or warm temperatures and sunny days! If you’re in the market for a top tier Sauvignon Blanc without the ridiculous price point, give Eva a shout at eva@epwines.nz or check out her site and other fantastic wines at epwines.nz.
