Wine Regions & Grapes
Sampling of Wineries
Acorn Andrea Oberto Atlas Peak Benziger Beringer Blandy's Bodega Navarro Correas Burgans Cantina Terlano Chimney Rock Chronicle Domaine Carneros Domaine de la Mordoree Dow's Dr. Loosen Emilio Lustau Fonseca Foxen Gaston Riviere Glen Ellen Hess Collection Innocent Bystander Kendall-Jackson Korbel La Caudrina Luna Vineyards Madeira Wine Company Martin Codax Masi Merryvale Mulderbosch Navarro Vineyards Pahlmeyer Roederer Estate Ruggeri Sawyer Cellars Sbragia Six Sigma Winery St. James Steltzner Vineyards Trinchero Winery Trione V. Sattui Winery William Fevre Wilson Winery
Category Archives: Sauvignon Blanc
Oberon Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Oberon, Napa Valley, Sauvignon Blanc 2009 This wine is the essence of grapefruit, from the aroma to the flavors in the mouth. The acidity is crisp, making this wine quite zippy and refreshing. The grapes are all Sauvignon Blanc and … Continue reading
Wildhurst Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Wildhurst, Lake County, Reserve, Sauvignon Blanc 2009 The nose features plenty of freshly mown grass and grapefruit – quite classic. In the mouth the citrus flavors shine in the most zippy way possible – nice and refreshing. I had a … Continue reading
Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Mulderbosch, Western Cape, Sauvignon Blanc 2009 The nose shows a strong sense of herbaceousness, fresh bell pepper, sliced open and in hand. In the mouth it is dynamic, quite fresh and as in prior vintages, assertive in its herbaceous and acidic … Continue reading
Le G de Chateau Guiraud
Chateau Guiraud, Bordeaux Blanc Sec, Le G de Chateau Guiraud 2007 The nose features straw, minerality, lanolin and stone fruit. There’s an evolved complexity that shows already. In the mouth there is a nice thread of acidity with the richness … Continue reading
Posted in Bordeaux, France, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon
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Ceago Vinegarden Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Ceago Vinegarden, Clear Lake, Kathleen’s Vineyard, Estate Grown, Sauvignon Blanc 2009 In the nose the fruit shows the character of peaches with notes of tropical fruit as well – absolutely vibrant. In the mouth, the fruit is also on full … Continue reading
Posted in California, Clear Lake, Lake County, Sauvignon Blanc
Tagged Ceago Vinegarden
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Foppiano Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Foppiano, Russian River Valley, Estate Bottled, Sauvignon Blanc 2009 The nose is clean and expresses ripe citrus, as in fresh oranges. Add to that an accent of tropical fruit, a whiff of bananas and floral notes, of the sweet and … Continue reading
Posted in California, Russian River Valley, Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma County
Tagged Foppiano
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California Sauvignon Blanc – super size
Both of these wines fill a role in providing inexpensive white wine for the equivalent of less than $5.00 per 750ml bottle. While there are similarities between the two wines, the styling is different. Sutter Home, California, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 … Continue reading
Andre Vatan Sancerre 2008
Domaine André Vatan, Sancerre, Les Charmes 2008 The nose features grass, lemon, minerality and perfume. In the mouth it is bracing with a sense of freshly sqeezed lemon juice – very nice. André Vatan is a generous and gregarious man who also … Continue reading
Hanna Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Hanna, Russian River Valley, Estate Grown, Sauvignon Blanc 2009 Notes back through the 2004 vintage show a consistent thread of bright citrus and high acidity. The current ’09 couples the citrus with freshly cut grass. A bit of petillance adds … Continue reading
Posted in California, Russian River Valley, Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma County
Tagged Hanna Winery
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Reynoso Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Reynoso Family Vineyards, Alexander Valley, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 There’s a nice waft of citrus in the nose with stone fruits like peaches and nectarines. In the mouth the story of citrus continues, with a soft profile and long flavors of … Continue reading
Posted in Alexander Valley, California, Sauvignon Blanc
Tagged Reynoso Family Vineyards
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Cantina Terlano 2008
During my visit to the Alto Adige in the summer of 2009 I had the opportunity to try these wines at the Cantina. Today they are available on the west coast of the United States. Cantina Terlano, Alto Adige, Pinot … Continue reading
Posted in Alto Adige, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Terlano Classico
Tagged Cantina Terlano
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Long Gamma Sonoma County White 2009
Long Gamma, Sonoma County, White Wine 2009 The nose explodes with sweetness, like a fruit basket laid inside a bouquet of flowers. In the mouth it is dry but not austere, smooth and ebulliently fruity – nice. The grapes behind … Continue reading
Chateau d’Yquem
Chateau d’Yquem, Sauternes 2005 From the start, the nose features a complex mix of honey, vanilla, appropriate volatility, creme caramel and dried apricots. In the mouth it is broad and viscous, a wine whose texture is luscious. With time, the … Continue reading
Posted in Bordeaux, France, Late Harvest White, Sauternes, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, White Dessert
Tagged Chateau d'Yquem
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Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Mulderbosch, Western Cape, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 The nose features minerality and green herbs. In the mouth this Sauvignon is as zippy as usual, green, acidic and quite refreshing. P&B in Stellenbosch 12.5% purchased for $15.99 at Bottle Barn Mulderbosch
Robledo Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Robledo, Lake County, Sauvignon Blanc 2007 This is a delightful Sauvignon. The nose sports citrus and floral notes. In the mouth the wine is clean and vibrantly citrussy with a pleasant acidic zip. Produced and bottled in Kelseyville 14.3% $20 … Continue reading
Posted in California, Lake County, Sauvignon Blanc
Tagged Robledo Family Vineyards, Robledo family winery
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Brassfield High Serenity Ranch Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Brassfield Estate, High Valley, High Serenity Ranch, Estate Bottled, Sauvignon Blanc 2007 Give this a little air to allow the fruity aromatics to come to the fore. Then you’ll find pineapple and lemon laced with crushed green herbs. The mouth … Continue reading
Domaine Vacheron Sancerre 2008
Domaine Vacheron, Sancerre 2008 The nose sports minerality and lime. In the mouth you’ll find concentrated citrus, a sense of austerity, a very dry wine with overt minerality – very nice and very long. The only thing missing is the … Continue reading
Saint Clair Vicar’s Choice Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Saint Clair, Marlborough, Vicar’s Choice, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 In the nose you’ll find apricot and green pepper spiced up with floral notes. In the mouth the acidity is vibrant and the body light with a bit of petillance – a … Continue reading
Trione Sauvignon Blanc 2006
I hope you don’t think that I’m on the payroll at Trione ’cause here is another review of a super wine. At the Chronicle judges’ dinner last week we were each given a gift-wrapped bottle of a wine to take … Continue reading
Posted in California, Russian River Valley, Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma County
Tagged Trione
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Peterson Sauvignon revisited
Peterson, Dry Creek Valley, Timbercrest Farms, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 During my visit at Peterson earlier in 2009 I was enamored with the ’08 Sauvignon and purchased a case. In May I wrote the following post: This wine is vibrant with … Continue reading
Posted in California, Dry Creek Valley, Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma County
Tagged Peterson Winery
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Six Sigma Sauvignon Blancs 2008
This flight provides a nice contrast of Sauvignon styles. You have the same winery, same county, same grape, same vintage, 2 vineyards and 2 takes on how to handle this grape in the winery. Both are great but as you’ll … Continue reading
The Wines of Charles Krug
This summer we had the opportunity to meet with winemaker Dave Galzignato. Our visit took us from Krug’s historical position in the Napa Valley to its modern incarnation, using a new sorting table to isolate the best of the best … Continue reading
Posted in Cabernet Sauvignon, California, Napa Valley, Sauvignon Blanc, Yountville
Tagged Charles Krug
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hazard hill Semillon Sauvignon 2008
hazard hill, Western Australia, semillon sauvignon Blanc 2008 Breezy and fresh, this wine shows grass and citrus in the nose. In the mouth it is crisp and clean, with concentrated flavors of lime and lime zest and a little petilance … Continue reading
Robert Mondavi Fumes 2007
This fall we visited Robert Mondavi with our Napa Valley class. We regained a sense of the historical significance of this winery and its founder while tasting some beautiful wines. Here is a look at their trademark Fumes from the … Continue reading
Posted in California, Napa Valley, Sauvignon Blanc
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Rutherford Grove Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Rutherford Grove, Napa Valley, Rutherford, Estate, Sauvignon Blanc 2007 Give this a little about 20 minutes of air when you open it to blow off a bit of reductive character. After that a light sense of citrus will come through. … Continue reading
Sonoma County Sauvignons 2007
Rancho Zabaco, Russian River, Reserve, Sauvignon Blanc 2007 There’s a nice spot of grassiness in the nose, with green peppers and grapefruit zest. In the mouth the grapefruit comes through with a nice level of refreshing acidity. Produced & bottled … Continue reading
Folie a Deux Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Folie a Deux, Napa Valley, Sauvignon Blanc 2007 This is a Sauvignon that smells quite pretty, blending flowers with citrus fruits. In the mouth the citrus story continues, with some thickness and a little viscosity – nice. The grapes are … Continue reading
Napa Cellars Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Napa Cellars, Napa Valley, Sauvignon Blanc 2007 This Sauvignon is clean, moderately concentrated, laser-like with acidity and has a touch of creaminess. 5% of the grapes are Semillon and the fruit was sourced from Calistoga, St. Helena and Rutherford. Malolactic … Continue reading
Le Blanc d’Eulalie 2007
Chateau Sainte Eulalie, Vin de Pays d’Oc, Le Blanc d ‘Eulalie, Sauvignon 2007 Unfortunately this wine has developed too much volatility. It was stoppered with a very hard synthetic cork, so perhaps that allowed the ingress of too much oxygen. … Continue reading
Posted in France, Languedoc, Sauvignon Blanc, Vin de Pays d'Oc
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Dry Creek Fume Blanc 2008
Dry Creek Vineyard, Sonoma County, Fume Blanc 2008 This Sauvignon is light and steely, smelling of freshly cut oranges and crisp with acidity. It is a regular favorite, garnering awards annually at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair. Production is all … Continue reading
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