Our allocation of Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 is always limited, and it always sells out. Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 is a skin-contact Pinot Gris from Bendigo and Bannockburn in Central Otago. The grapes spent up to 36 days on their skins, giving an amber-coloured orange wine. The wine has pink grapefruit, blood orange and marmalade, grippy texture and bright acidity. It suits adventurous white wine drinkers.
Pinot Gris grapes have pinkish-grey skins, and leaving the juice on them for a month turns the wine amber. Sato's winemaking notes describe deep citrus aromas of pink grapefruit, blood orange and marmalade. There is a savoury touch on the palate, with fresh fruit and a gentle grip.
Sato made 3,533 bottles, according to its winemaking notes. This is a wine for anyone who enjoys orange wine, and for Pinot Gris drinkers who want to see the grape in a very different light. It is best enjoyed with good food.
The style is a nod to Yoshi Sato's mentor in Alsace, Jean-Pierre Frick. The grapes fermented with wild yeast and stayed on their skins for 29 to 36 days. The wine then spent 14 months in French oak barrels before it was bottled without fining or filtering.
What it tastes like
This wine has deep citrus aromas: pink grapefruit, blood orange and marmalade.
The palate has a savoury touch but keeps the freshness of the fruit. The skins give it grippy tannin, a light drying feel on the gums like a red wine. Vivid acidity keeps it lively through the finish.
Style at a glance
- Body: medium, with a textured, grippy feel
- Acidity: vivid
- Tannin: grippy, from 29 to 36 days on skins
- Oak: 14 months in French oak barrels
- Style: amber, citrus, savoury, grippy
Food to enjoy this with
The grip and acidity make this a wine best enjoyed with great food. Good matches include:
- Roast duck with an orange glaze, which picks up the blood orange in the wine
- Tandoori chicken
- Pork and fennel sausages
- A charcuterie board with cured meats
- Mushroom and miso risotto
- Korean fried chicken: the tannin and bright acidity cut through the crunchy, spiced coating
Who makes it
Sato is the work of Yoshiaki (Yoshi) and Kyoko Sato. They met in 1998 while working for a Japanese bank in Tokyo, and spent more than 10 years in banking in Tokyo and London. In 2006 they moved to New Zealand to study viticulture and winemaking at Lincoln University. Both started their wine careers at Felton Road under Blair Walter. Yoshi went on to make wine at Mount Edward from 2009. That was also the year of the first Sato wine: 190 cases of Pinot Noir. Kyoko spent 12 years at Felton Road before joining Sato full-time in 2018.
Their training also took them to natural and biodynamic producers in Europe, including Jean-Pierre Frick in Alsace, Jean-Yves Bizot and Domaine Matassa. At Sato every fermentation runs on wild yeast. No sulphur is added during winemaking, and only a trace (10 to 15 parts per million) goes in just before bottling. About 60% of the wine comes from their own vineyard. The rest comes from organically farmed vineyards in Bannockburn and Bendigo.
About the vintage
Sophie Preece's 2023 vintage report on Central Otago quoted consultant viticulturist Timbo Morrison-Deaker, who described it as the third exceptional season in a row under the influence of La Niña. The final 4 weeks brought a sharp change, and frost fighting was back for the first time in about 3 years. Berries were larger than usual, which lifted yields.
Sugars at harvest came in lower than expected, and natural acidity (malic acid, the tart acid in green apples) higher. Timbo still expected 2023 to be seen as a stellar vintage.
James Suckling found that 2023 performed exceptionally well in the South Island. In his 2024 New Zealand vintage report he named Sato among the excellent wineries of Central Otago, saying its "current releases, mostly 2023s, are excellent."
Technical details
| Winery: |
Sato Wines |
| Wine: |
L'atypique Pinot Gris |
| Vintage: |
2023 |
| Variety: |
Pinot Gris |
| Region: |
Red Shed and Defiance vineyards, Bendigo and Bannockburn, Central Otago |
| Country: |
New Zealand |
| Alcohol: |
12.8% |
| Oak: |
14 months in French oak barrels |
| Fermentation: |
Wild yeast, 29 to 36 days on skins |
Where to buy
For international delivery to the USA, Australia, UK, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, China and South Korea, the Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 is available from our winenz.com website. For delivery within New Zealand, buy it from thewineryonline.co.nz. You can also buy it at our Queenstown and Arrowtown stores (7–9 Ballarat Street, Queenstown and 27 Ramshaw Lane, Arrowtown), alongside a large range of New Zealand and international wine. On both websites and in both stores you can build a mixed case from a large range of wines, and if you are visiting from overseas, we can ship it home for you.
Questions we are often asked
Is Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 an orange wine?
Yes. Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 fermented on its skins for 29 to 36 days, which gives it an amber colour and a grippy texture.
What does Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 taste like?
Sato describes pink grapefruit, blood orange and marmalade aromas, a savoury palate with fresh fruit, grippy tannin and vivid acidity.
Where do the grapes for Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 come from?
They come from the Red Shed and Defiance vineyards in the Bendigo and Bannockburn areas of Central Otago. The grapes were hand-picked on 18 and 24 March 2023.
How much Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 was made?
Sato made 3,533 bottles of L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023, bottled on 24 July 2024.
Does Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 have added sulphites?
Yes, but only a small amount. Sato added less than 15 mg/L of sulphites before bottling and nothing else.
Where can I buy Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023?
The Winery ships Sato L'atypique Pinot Gris 2023 internationally from winenz.com to the USA, Australia, UK, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, China and South Korea, and delivers within New Zealand from thewineryonline.co.nz. You can also buy it in our Queenstown and Arrowtown stores, at 7–9 Ballarat Street, Queenstown and 27 Ramshaw Lane, Arrowtown.
