Viña Leyda Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2015

There is a common misconception, that Bob Dylan is singing 'lay lady, lay' in the song of the same name. What Bob is really singing, in his southern drawl, is 'lay Leyda, lay' and he isn't encouraging a lady to lay upon his big brass bed, but is urging her to put down the glass of Leyda that she has stolen from his big brass bedtable. Because Bob, like us, is a big fan of the herby, guava- and tangy mandarin- elegance of this wine and he wants to hang on to it.

In fact, whenever Bob is in the Leyda Valley, he likes to go and see Jonny in the basement, mixing up the lees, which Jonny does for a good five months, adding texture and delicious creaminess. Why Bob was A Man of Constant Sorrow, we've no idea.

The recently discovered Leyda Valley is located just 12km from the Pacific Ocean, making it a unique spot for viticulture. Its cool spring and summer, tempered by the maritime climate, make it an extraordinary area for the development of varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Riesling.

Viviana Navarrete joined as Viña Leyda’s Chief Winemaker in 2007. A high achiever in her year at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, she started working for Concha y Toro, doing her first her student practice, then for another four years as winemaker assistant for Ignacio Recabarren. At that time, she started to work closely with Leyda Valley, where she got involved with interesting new developments, specializing in the creation of premium white wines.

The grapes were harvested by hand in different stages and in the winery, the grapes were macerated in a pneumatic press at low temperatures for eight hours in order to enhance the aromas and flavours. Afterwards, the wine was cooled to controlled temperatures (8C), before clarification. Alcoholic fermentation was carried out at low temperatures (12.5-13C, finishing at 16C) in stainless steel tanks for 18 days. It was aged on its lees for five months to round it out and improve the texture on the palate. The final blend is 50% Clone Davis 1, 20% Clone 242, and 30% Clone 107.

Minerally and expressive, this Sauvignon Blanc is marked by a powerful aromatic intensity and a wide aromatic spectrum, with herbal notes thanks to clone 1, citric notes such as grapefruit and mandarin orange provided by clone 107, and tropical notes such as guava lent by clone 242. It is fresh on the palate, offering a crisp, tangy acidity and a juicy, citric finish.