Frešer – Sauvignon Blanc, 2019

Today’s pick is a wine that every Sauvignon Blanc lover out there should try. We’re at Frešer in the subdistrict of Ritoznoj, where Matjaž Frešer produces a series of organically crafted varietal wines in harmony with nature.

We’re in Slovene Styria, our country’s northeast, right below the Pohorje hills. To pinpoint exactly, we’re in Ritoznoj. Its picturesque landscape is marked by a gentle incline and elevation, different soil types and where warm sunny days are tempered by the cool breeze from the Pohorje hills. A mixture that guarantees wines with a distinctive varietal character, but also complexity marked by minerality.

This Sauvignon is actually an assemblage of three different vineyards that are 10 years old. They are planted at altitudes between 280 and 350 meters above sea level. Lower ones on sand and clay bringing crisp expressions and higher on marl which takes care of the mineral signage.

Grapes are picked overripe, with Oechsle levels above 90. Grapes of each plot are vinified separately but follow the same direction. Matjaž combines natural yeast with little addition of selected ones, must is then left to ferment at controlled temperatures between 10 to 18°
Celsius in inox tanks for 5 months on fine lees, with constant batonnage for the first 5 weeks.

This allows him to create an optimal assemblage, which rests for further 1,5 month and is then bottled. This way, he has more flexibility to keep constant quality levels, and it delivers year after year. The confirmation came last year as it scored silver at Decanter World Wine Awards and Concours Mondial de Bruxelles.

This Sauvignon has a lighter strawy yellow colour with a green tinge with a silver reflection.

The nose is intense, with aromas of green apple, pear, carambola, lime, capsicum jasmine and elderflower, with a subtle touch of flint.

The taste is structured, soft with lively crispness underpinned by a mineral pleasant bitterness. An elegantly structured wine with a medium body and lasting taste intricated between freshness and minerality reconfirming fruit aromas.

Matjaž was kind enough to offer a special promotion to everyone following. If you order a box of 6 bottles, you get one free (5+1). Just send him an email to vino@freser.si in the next 10 days. The promotion is limited and will expire February 1^st, so hurry up!