Nothing says summer like a Sauvignon Blanc
In my world, the sure sign of summer is when Sauvignon Blanc begins flying off the shelves. After repeatedly running out of Sauvignon Blancs this past couple of weeks, I decided to put three wines I believed were probably good quality and a good value to a taste test.
Although the home of Sauvignon Blanc is actually the Loire Valley in France, it is grown in many wine regions around the world, including California, Chile and New Zealand. It is from these areas I chose to taste.
The first wine was 2009 Simi Sauvignon Blanc. I could sense the warm Sonoma climate from first smell of tropical fruit on the nose right through the fullness on the palate. In fact, California Sauvignon Blanc is sometimes referred to as Fume Blanc to distinguish its more weighty body from lighter-style Sauvignon Blanc.
The next wine was Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc from Chile. This wine was fresh, clean, crisp and dry with some mineral and citrus components. I was thinking about seafood and any summer vegetable when I tried this one.
The third wine was Giesen Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. It followed the New Zealand style of pungent fruit on the nose and was very juicy with tangy grapefruit on the palate.
It was a fun experiment. Three very different wines from three very different parts of the world all from the same grape. As I anticipated, I thought all three ended up being excellent values and which one to drink would depend on your personal taste or mood.
Rebecca Bawkon is the Wine Steward at the Busch’s on Main Street. Her biggest pleasure is getting to know people and their palates to help them navigate the world of wine.
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