GRAYWACKE SAUVIGNON BLANC 2010

The hallmarks of Cloudy Bay founder Kevin Judd leap from the glass.  While the tomato leaf and Marlborough herbals lead the charge, tropical notes and violet flowers quickly back them up.  In the mouth it has richness and a clear vein of crisp purity, while a hint of ferral complexity comes from the portion that underwent wildfermentation in old French oak barrels.  Not as rauchy as his previous creation Te Koko, but more complex and interesting than most Marlborough Sauvignons.  It leaves a grapefuity after-taste which hangs on a firm frame of alcohol (13.6%) . Retail $25.95.