SAUVIGNON BLANC

Never a bride, always a bridesmaid

By Peter L. Finkelstein

In 2004 The San Francisco Chronicle described sauvignon blanc as “never a bride always a bridesmaid.” Sauvignon blanc may be the ultimate summer wine and it is certainly spectacular with food. But it has always been the “bridesmaid” to chardonnay.

The Flavor magazine tasting panel was brought together to taste sauvignon blanc from California, France, Chile and New Zealand to get to the bottom of the grape variety’s mystery. The name comes from the French word, sauvage, or wild. Wine experts trace the first sauvignon blanc back to Bordeaux in the mid 1700s, with plantings in the Loire Valley shortly after that.

In France, sauvignon blanc is still the primary grape for bordeaux blanc, and sancerre and pouilly fume in the Loire Valley. Sauvignon blanc found its way to Chile around 1875, but at that point was called sauvignonasse, and produced a white wine with a pink tinge. It wasn’t until the early 1990s that a pure sauvignon blanc clone was separated out in Chile. New Zealand didn’t introduce sauvignon blanc until the early 1970s, and then only as a blending grape. The amazing Kiwi sauvignon blanc explosion finally started in the late 1990s and is growing worldwide.

Charles Wetmore somehow acquired grapevine cuttings from the famous Chateau D’Yquem in Sauterne in the early 1880s and brought them to California where he planted them at his Cresta Blanca winery. Nothing particularly interesting happens again until 1968 when Robert Mondavi, a big fan of the underselling sauvignon blanc, gets the bright marketing idea to call his version, fume blanc. At that point it was off to the races, with Dry Creek’s David Stare following immediately with his own fume blanc. There is truly no difference between California fume blanc and sauvignon blanc. This is American marketing at its best.

Thom Elkjer of the San Francisco Chronicle writes, “Chefs are big fans of sauvignon blanc because of how well it matches a variety of food, flavors and textures. This is particularly true with today’s fascinating new fusions of Asian, Mediterranean and Latin American cuisines.”

Our samples brought this quote from Kurt Clodfelter, a CIA-trained chef from Fishpaws Marketplace, “This would rock with salsa.”

Steve Le Barron, owner of The Butcher Block, made two interesting comments. He surmised that 60 percent of the white wines at good Thai restaurants are sauvignon blancs. “SB would go great with slow cooked spiced ribs.”

We asked Richard McClure of Carrol’s Creek and Cheryl Stephenson of Lewnes Steakhouse about their SB selections and both restaurateurs said they had plenty on the list, but that they were clearly the bridesmaid to chardonnay.

New Zealand won both first and second place in our tasting and, notably, by a huge margin, over California who came in third and fourth. Neither Chile nor France placed in the top 4:

Our winners:

First Place: Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand 2008 ($14)

Second Place: Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand 2008 ($22)

Third Place: Dry Creek Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma California 2008 ($21)

Fourth Place: Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc, Napa California 2006 ($30)

The Duckhorn was interesting in that it was from 2006. It did not have the bright fruit and citrus of the New Zealand winners, but had amazing depth. Capital wine columnist Pat Darr pegged it right away as California, noting its oak nose and creamy finish. Our “average consumer” Garrett Johnson, thought it lacked character.

The Dry Creek Sauvignon Blanc is a new release. The Stare family has made a sauvignon blanc to go along with its famous fume blanc. It had lots of tuti-fruity flavors and seemed to be a bridge between California and New Zealand.

Kim Crawford only missed first place by one vote. Debra Tracy of Bay Ridge was constantly pointing out the wonderful acidity of our New Zealand selections. Our wine broker, Tracy MacPherson, summed up the Kim Crawford with one word, “Inviting!” We urge you to invite the Kim Crawford SB over for a visit.

Our winner, Nobilo, won a shocking victory. It is the largest selling New Zealand wine in the U.S. and sells for under $15. Once again, the consumer has proven themselves right in saying price isn’t always a barometer of buyer pleasure. At least one of our tasters didn’t write tasting notes — he just put smiley faces on his page. LeBarron summed it up perfectly, “Just classic sauvignon blanc from every angle.”