Ninth Island Sauvignon Blanc 2024 Tasmania

Winemaking Notes

Cold-harvested at night from selective blocks in the West Tamar, the grapes were carefully pressed with protective handling to preserve naturally vibrant tropical aromas and flavours. The juice was brightly clarified with cold settling and fermented slowly at very cool temperatures to enhance the wine's aromatic intensity and fruit purity. Bottled early under screwcap to preserve intense varietal fruits and fresh herbaceous characters, this winemaking approach ensures the wine captures the wild flavours of Tasmania. Ninth Island is named after a tiny island that sits alone in the Bass Strait, just offshore from the Pipers Brook Estate where their wines are made, and the island's windswept, pristine environment is the inspiration behind this modern range of wines that showcase Tasmania's distinctive cool-climate character.

Vintage Conditions

Produced from grapes grown at Strathlynn on the west bank of the Tamar River, 70km from Pipers Brook, the vineyard benefits from unique terroir and climatic conditions. In contrast to sites in the northeast, which are close to Bass Strait and subject to strong maritime influences, the Tamar Valley's hillside slopes offer vines some protection from prevailing westerly winds, promoting warm, settled conditions for much of the growing season. The West Tamar has surprisingly low rainfall, whilst sites feature a mixture of brown Chromosol and Vertosol (black cracking clay) soils with excellent water-holding capacity, offering a steady supply of moisture and nourishment to the vines throughout the growing season. Vines averaging 20 years of age, grown predominantly on cane-pruned Vertical Shoot Positioned trellises, give an abundance of concentrated fruit character. Selective leaf-plucking helps achieve full ripeness with well-balanced, fleshy flavours that define this exceptional Tasmanian Sauvignon Blanc.