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The World of Sauvignon Blanc
 Some people view Sauvignon Blanc as "poor man's
Chardonnay."
Poor souls!
It's not Chardonnay, doesn't taste like Chardonnay and doesn't always match the same
foods as Chardonnay!
California's Sauvignon Blanc history doesn't go back very far. In the late
1960s Robert Mondavi played around with this grape. He made a dry wine...didn't
sell. He made a dessert wine....didn't sell. Then he took a cue from the
Europeans and knowing there are Loire Valley Sauvignon Blancs called "Sancerre"
and "Pouilly-Fumé", he coined the name "Fumé Blanc".
BINGO! A
sexy name for Sauvignon Blanc and now the wine was selling like crazy! He
didn't trademark or copyright the term and so this term is one of Mr. Mondavi's gifts to
the wine business.
- When the Fetzer winery was still a small business and
family owned, they ran a test in their Mendocino tasting room. They offered visitors
two identical wines. One was in a Bordeaux bottle, the other in a Burgundy bottle.
One was labeled Sauvignon Blanc, the other Fumé Blanc. Despite the fact the
wines in the glasses were identical, an overwhelming number of people had a definite
preference for "Fumé Blanc". Today Fetzer sells tons of "Valley Oaks
Fumé Blanc".
The style of wine is dependent upon the winemaker and the vineyard. Some are
made without oak, others clubbed to death with wood. Some are fermented in barrel,
others in stainless steel. Some are cultivated in cool regions, making crisp, light
wines; others are grown in warm regions and are big and rich. You can find grassy
notes in some Sauvignons, while others have vegetal notes and others display grapefruit,
citrus and sometimes even a tropical fruit note.
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- In France's Loire Valley the wines of Sancerre and
Pouilly-Fumé are 100% Sauvignon Blanc. In France's Bordeaux, often the predominant
grape is Semillon, with a modest amount of Sauvignon Blanc. These are
usually fermented in wood and the oak typically plays an important part in the wine.
California
has a broad spectrum of Sauvignons. The rest of world is now making good wine from this
grape, too. New Zealand has emerged as a prime area for this variety and we've
tasted superb wines from Italy, South Africa, Austria, Spain, Australia and South America.
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Best Sauvignon Blanc Buys
- OYSTER BAY
2009 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (list $15) SALE $11.99
 This
is a large firm which has had its name in the New Zealand newspapers with
great regularity.
The brand is owned by the Delegat winery, a large winemaking firm and
vineyard company in Kiwi-land.
We've had several vintages of Oyster Bay Sauvignon and each has been
magnificent and price-worthy.
Their 2009 is currently in the shop and it's a great best buy Sauvignon
Blanc!
The vines are young and yet they produce a wine of marvelous intensity,
aromas and flavors. You cannot mistake this wine for anything else but
Sauvignon, even if you're not a wine "expert."
This is fresh, dry, crisp, citrusy and a great match with seafood or
Asian-styled foods.-
POMELO 2009 SAUVIGNON BLANC $9.99
 Randy Mason
offers this wine, made from Lake County fruit, at a most reasonable price.
His Mason label features a good $15 Napa Sauvignon and he's added a
whiz-bang bottling for $35. We've found the Pomelo label to be just
about the best value in a ten-buck California Sauvignon.
A Pomelo is some sort of citrus fruit that's native to Malaysia.
You'll encounter citrusy notes on the nose and palate of this light (that
means under 14% alcohol, a rarity in California!) wine. It's a good
cocktail wine and pairs well with seafood.
There's a case discount, too, making this even more enticing.
MANU Some fine
feathered friends produce this little label in New Zealand. One couple
is named Bird and the other is named Duckhorn (but not Napa Valley's
Duckhorn)...
Their 2009 Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, fruity, typically-New-Zealand,
citrusy dry white. And it's got a modest price tag. Case
discounts, too.
Currently in stock: 2009 MANU New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
$9.99 (Case discounts, too)
Premium Sauvignon Blancs
BAILLY 2006 SANCERRE SALE $19.99 750ml
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- This little producer in the Loire makes some delicious,
crisp, tangy Sauvignon Blancs (we also have his Sancerre Rouge--a lovely Pinot Noir).
Jacques Bailly runs the show now that his father, Sylvain, is
retired. The Sancerre features the citrusy, minerally notes we love in
Loire Valley Sauvignons. A number of Sancerres arrive in the market
for ridiculously high prices. Bailly's is fairly priced and top
quality.
It's best with seafood...shellfish is an ideal accompaniment. Quite
good with Asian-styled seafood, too.
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Monsieur & Madame Jacques Bailly.
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DUCKHORN VINEYARDS 2009 Napa Valley SAUVIGNON BLANC $26.99
We have a few magnums ... maybe a
few half bottles, too. The
Duckhorns decided they needed to have some sort of white wine to drink, given the summer heat in the
Napa Valley. With a number of vintages of Merlot under their belts, they decided to
produce Sauvignon Blanc as their cool, refreshing white.
The first vintage was 1982
and the wine has changed some over the years. They veered off course from making
bone dry Sauvignon with the addition of some Viognier, totally changing the wine from a
Bordeaux-styled white to something completely different. Happily the original recipe
is being employed (or close to original). The model for Duckhorn
has been the white wines of Bordeaux, rather than the Sauvignons of the
Loire Valley.
A bit of barrel-fermentation and some
maturation period on the spent yeast (called the "lees") contributes a toasty
element to the wine. Duckhorn uses a substantial amount of Sémillon,
too: 25% in the 2009 vintage. The wine displays a bit of richness and
ripe fruits such as mango and papaya, with a touch of lemon and orange. Rather nice alongside seafood prepared with a citrus element.
Limited availability.-
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- FERRARI CARANO 2009 Sonoma "FUMÉ
BLANC" list $18 SALE $13.99
 Located in Sonoma's Dry Creek Valley, this is an excellent place to cultivate
Sauvignon Blanc. The wine is a blend of Sauvignons from other locations within
Sonoma and it's a light, dry, mildly herbal white wine.
I find it a
bit fruity and not particularly acidic. Thirty-five percent of the juice is
fermented in oak, but wood is not a major component in this melony white
wine.
FROG'S LEAP 2009 Napa Valley/Rutherford SAUVIGNON BLANC SALE
$15.99
"Time's fun when you're having flies" is the winery motto. It's
also fun when you're drinking their crisp, mildly spicy, citrusy Sauvignon
Blanc
John Williams' 2009, mostly from Rutherford-grown fruit, is mildly citrusy
with an underlying grassy or herbal tone. It is the most impressive
vintage we've tasted from Frog's Leap in five or ten years...really
nice! Don't miss it.-
GRGICH HILLS 2008 Napa Valley "FUMÉ BLANC" (List $30) Sale
$24.99
 Grgich Hills has been
making Sauvignon Blanc (they call it "Fumé") for many
years. But this is their first "Estate Grown" wine.
It seems they purchased a vineyard site in nearby American Canyon, a
wind-swept location they felt was ideal for Sauvignon Blanc. They also
have a few acres of Sauvignon in the Carneros district. Here's a
vintage that has little in common with previous Grgich Fumé Blanc wines
from just four or five years ago.
One big change at Grgich-Hills: Biodynamic farming.
About half of the juice was fermented in wood, the rest done in stainless
steel to preserve the citrus, fig and melon-like fruit elements. The
nose displays more intensity and citrusy notes than previous vintages, as
Grgich has the more aromatic "Musqué" clone of Sauvignon
here. Dry on the palate, this is a delicious cocktail white and it
pairs especially nicely with seafood.
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If you have not had a Grgich Fumé in a few years, you need to have a look
at their current releases.
The new 2006 Chardonnay, by the way, is also exceptionally good.
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WESTERLY VINEYARDS 2006 Santa Ynez Sold Out
 Though
the brand and vineyard is called "Westerly," it's actually located
in the southeastern edge of the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara
County. The sub-region is known to the locals as "Happy
Canyon."
Owned by the Afromsky family, the vineyard land comprises some 85 acres as
of the most recent tally. They have been selling grapes to The Ojai
Vineyard, Babcock and Gainey, amongst others.
A portion of the juice is fermented in neutral wood as well as some 34% being
vinified in stainless steel tanks. There's a citrusy note which reminds us
a bit of lime, while a hint of grassiness peeks through, also. This is a
fine partner for most seafood dishes and it shows well with sushi and other
Asian fare.
- HONIG 2006 Napa Valley (Rutherford) SAUVIGNON BLANC
$21.99
HONIG 2008 Napa SAUVIGNON BLANC $12.99
 This family-run winery offers two bottlings of Sauvignon Blanc from the Napa
Valley. Theirs are some of the few really bone dry California Sauvignons still being
made, as many winemakers cater to the sweet tooth-palates which critique and write about
wine. They both are good wines, the "reserve" bottling having more oak,
yet still displaying intense Sauvignon fruit aromas and flavors. It's
really nicely done, with lots of vanillin and smoky notes. It is now
labeled simply as "Rutherford Sauvignon Blanc."
The 2008 "regular" bottling is quite good and typical of Honig's
recent efforts. They do some skin contact, we noticed when we visited
during the harvest season...this contributes a bit of character to the wine
according to winemaker Kristen Belair.
It's a fragrant dry white, having notes reminiscent of Loire Valley
Sauvignons and some elements we like in New Zealand wines. About half
the juice comes from Honig's own vineyards. Very fine and
price-worthy.
ISABEL 2009 Marlborough New Zealand SAUVIGNON BLANC
$17.99 This modest-sized winery has a fantabulous New Zealand
Sauvignon Blanc. If you've liked the wines of Cloudy Bay Winery, you'll most likely
find this to be to your taste. Isabel used to sell grapes to their neighbors at
Cloudy Bay.
The category of New Zealand Sauvignon has been quite active over the
past few years. We stock about five or six of them and Isabel has been
in the shop the longest and it's been consistently good.
Their wine is a favorite, having
that citrusy, gooseberry quality that's the hallmark of these wines. I
find the new (2009) vintage showing the typical Isabel character. The
wine has nice citrusy and grassy tones with a hint of grapefruit spiciness
and passion-fruit. Nice and
dry...crisp and perfectly suited to service with fresh seafood. Unlike
most California Sauvignons, this one is well less than 14% alcohol. I
think it's about 12.8%...-
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DE SANTE
 David
DeSante grew up surrounded by grapevines, though his first winemaking
experience took place when he was all of 8 years old. He made some
wine in the sink from "jelly jar" varieties as a kid growing up
in Pennsylvania.
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- He was on the road to being a cardiologist when he had a
change of heart and enrolled at U.C. Davis and moving to
California.
DeSante has been affiliated with the University of Robert Mondavi in Napa,
as well as the Cullen winery in western Australia. Back in Napa he
also has made wine at Trefethen and S. Anderson. He is currently
affiliated with the Davies and Gamble "Origin" wines in
Napa.
We've tasted several vintages from DeSante and they've been routinely
excellent. The wine is unmistakable in
terms of varietal character. They like to ferment the juice at low
temps to retain as much fruit as possible. What we like about this
wine is it's intensely Sauvignon...you won't mistake it for Chardonnay,
Semillon or Riesling, for example.
The fragrances display an herbal character, but with passion-fruit
aromas. The same elements shine on the palate, offering a crisp,
light, yet incredibly flavorful wine. It's perfect as a seafood
white.
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Currently in stock:
2007 DeSante
Napa Sauvignon Blanc (Was $20) SALE $12.99
WALTER HANSEL WINERY
 The
Hansel family has long been associated with Sonoma County, having been in
the automobile business in the Santa Rosa area. They planted a few
vines in the late 1970s, and in the 1980s, they extended the vineyard
plantings so a more commercial level.
The winery was started in 1996 when they made about 3 barrels of Pinot
Noir and a dozen barrels, or so, of Chardonnay.
Their wines, principally Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, remain at a very good
level of quality and they're reasonably priced. Now they're making
Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc and this is good quality and
attractively-priced.
The 2008 is in stock presently. The aromas offer notes of lemons and
limes...not an oak-driven wine, the fruit dominates on the palate.
Dry and moderately acidic, so it pairs well with seafood.
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Currently in stock: 2008 WALTER HANSEL Russian
River Valley SAUVIGNON BLANC SALE $14.99
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