UK Wine Show 26 Simon Waghorn, Astrolabe and Whitehaven winemaker

This show was published 24 November 2006

Overview

Simon Waghorn is winemaker for Astrolabe and Whitehaven - two different wines but both very good. We find out how the Whitehaven, made from grapes from 40+ sites around Marlborough, creates a rounder blend with consistency from year to year. While the Astrolabe comes from only two vineyards and can have a more extreme range of style. We also talk about how the flavour changes in the grapes as the Sauvignon Blanc changes. Changing from grassy to nettles and on through to gooseberries and grapefruit through to ripe citrus and ripe stone fruit.

We talk about why Pinot Noir from Marlborough has taken off in the last four years and how they are learning to control all the raw fruit that comes from Marlborough Pinot Noir.

In the podcast we talk about how people at ThirtyFifty wine tastings have rated his Sauvignon Blancs, you can see those graphs by following the links below.

Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc 2003
Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc 2004
Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc 2005
Astrolabe Sauvignon Blanc 2005

Technical Terms used in the podcast
Veraison:
Veraison is the stage in a grapes development that marks the beginning of ripening, when the grape changes in colour from a hard green grape to a softened coloured grape. During Veraison the berry swell in size and sugars start to build in the grape. Not all grapes reach veraison at the some time and is dependent upon sunlight, temperature and the grape to leaf ratio.

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Sponsorship

The UK Wine Show is sponsored by ThirtyFifty. Our team of wine tasters are busy entertaining and educating UK consumers to help them get the most out of wine.

Music

The music used for the UK Wine Show is Griffes de Jingle 1 by Marcel de la Jartèle and Silence by Etoile Noire.