All about Sauvignon Blanc and Asti

The plan today is to sample Sauvignon Blanc from several different countries and regions. Plus a little Asti. It was fun to have the scents and tastes typical of a Sauvignon Blanc readily available as we wrote up out tasting notes.

Wine Sweetness Scale

Menu

• Green Chili Chowder - Dianne
• Goat Cheese in a Walnut Crust with Greens and Apples from "Perfect Pairings" by Evan and Joyce Goldstein, pages 78 & 79. Goat cheese and Sauvignon Blanc were made for each other.
• Popcorn
• Moscoto D'Asti was a sweet way to end the day

From France:

2014  Thomas-Labaille Sancerre Les Monts Damnes Chavignol Lois/Dressner Collections 13% abv $17.09

Varietal: 100% Sauvignon

Region: Loire Valley, Sancerre Appellation

From the United States:

2016 Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc 13.8 abv $15.29

Varietal: Sauvignon Blanc

Region: CA, Sonoma County

From Chili:

2014 Lapostolle Casa Grand Selection 13%abv  $12.59

Varietal : 98% Sauvignon Blanc, 1% Sauvignon Gris and 1% of Semillón.

Region: Chili. Valle Del Rapel

From New Zealand:
2016 Mud House New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 12.5% abv $11.69

Varietal: Sauvignon Blanc

Region: New Zealand Marlborough

From Italy

2016 Saracco Moscato D'Asti DOP 6% abv $15.29

Varietal: Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains

Region: Italy, Piedmont, Muscat D'Asti

____________________________________________________________________

2014  Thomas-Labaille Sancerre Les Monts Damnes Chavignol Lois/Dressner Collections 13% abv $17.09

Varietal: 100% Sauvignon

Region: Loire Valley, Sancerre Appellation

My Tasting Notes:

Appearance

Nose

Palate

Assessment of Quality  (balance, intensity, length and complexity)

Level of readiness to drink

More Information

This is crowd-pleasing Sauvignon-Blanc from one of the finest vineyards in Sancerre - a great choice for Thanksgiving! Jean-Paul Labaille continues the great work of his father-in-law Claude Thomas, creating one of the finest Sancerres from vines in "les Monts Damnees," an incredibly steep-south facing hillside in Chavignol on Kimmeridgian limestone and red clay. The 2014 is a great example of this wine, with complex elegant aromas of dried pear, lime-flower, boxwood, citrus and stone. The palate is ripe and full but with firm acidity, with flavors of white fruits, anise, saline minerals, citrus and earth. This is a great Sancerre that is drinking beautifully now but don't hesitate to cellar for five to ten years...

Chavognol Typical winemaking village, located at the bottom of a small valley surrounded by hills at evocative places. The name Monts-Damnés emphasizes the extreme hardness of the work of the peasants who had to cultivate the vineyard by hand on these steep slopes. Moreover, since a particularly violent storm of 1921, many vines have been abandoned there. 
Chavignol has another title of glory: Crottin de Chavignol, one of twenty-five cheeses from France to benefit from a designation of origin. This delicious goat cheese is famous throughout France. In the village, a cheese factory refines this product whose tasting watered Sancerre is a treat.

2016 Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc 13.8 abv $15.29

Varietal: Sauvignon Blanc

Region: CA, Sonoma County

My Tasting Notes:

Appearance

Nose

Palate

Assessment of Quality  (balance, intensity, length and complexity)

Level of readiness to drink

More Information

Fro   

From New Zealand:
2016 Mud House New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 12.5% abv $11.69

Varietal: Sauvignon Blanc
Region: New Zealand Marlborough

More Information
Information from Mud House

Winemaker Notes

Pale lemon color. Lifted aromatic nose of snow pea, citrus, and passion fruit. A beautifully balanced wine. The front palate fills with fresh greens and ripe tropical flavors. The crisp grapefruit-like acidity extends the palate to a long mouth-watering finish. 
Perfect with aromatic Vietnamese chicken pho.

Critical Acclaim

WW90

Wilfred Wong of Wine.com

Nicely done and perfect for the everyday marketplace, the delectable 2016 Mud House Sauvignon Blanc 

comes through with soft grapefruit flavors that stay smooth through the wine's finish. Pair this wine with red tuna sashimi. (Tasted: November 27, 2017, San Francisco, CA)

WS90

Wine Spectator

Ruby grapefruit, peach and apricot notes are intense, fragrant and fleshy, with good focus on the finish, where the flavors linger and a hint of honeysuckle kicks in. Drink now.

COLOUR

Pale lemon.

NOSE

Lifted aromatic nose of snow pea, nettles and guava.

PALATE

The front palate fills with fresh melon, citrus and grapefruit flavours. The crisp grapefruit like acidity extends the palate to a long mouth-watering finish.

FOOD MATCH

Vietnamese seafood spring rolls, with fresh coriander, lime and crunchy vegetables.

2016 Saracco Moscato D'Asti DOP 6% abv $15.29

Varietal: Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains

Region: Italy, Piedmont, Muscat D'Asti

My Tasting Notes:

Appearance

Nose

Palate

Assessment of Quality  (balance, intensity, length and complexity)

Level of readiness to drink

More Information

Winemaker Notes

Saracco Moscato is as sweet and seductive as the hills where it is born and grows; as vibrant and sharp as the mountains that surround and protect the land on the horizon; refreshing and effervescent, like the wind rushing down from the Alps towards their hills. Served cold with its delicate and persistent bubbles, it is like a refreshing shower in summer.

Critical Acclaim

WE92

Wine Enthusiast

This fragrant dessert wine opens with intense aromas of citrus blossom, white peach and a touch of sage. The elegantly foaming creamy palate offers candied apricot, tangerine zest and ginger. Lively acidity gives it a crisp refreshing finish.

RP92

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

This wine comes to us from one of the finest producers of sweet Moscato that I know of. The Saracco 2016 Moscato d'Asti is a fresh and cheerful wine that is best consumed young when those aromas are so pure and beautiful. The bouquet is redolent of honey, sweet peach and exotic fruit. In the mouth, the wine is creamy and rich. This vintage strikes me as particularly well put together and articulate.

Fizzy muscat or moscato wines became so popular a few years ago that practically everyone makes one now. However, you haven’t tasted moscato at its best until you’ve tasted the original from northwestern Italy. And, Paolo Saracco makes some of the best of the best with ethereal aromas of peaches, melons, honeysuckle and orange zest that invite you to just sit with your nose in the glass.

Those aromas translate to flavors in the mouth. They are heightened by gentle bubbles and sweetness, then confronted with citrusy acidity. This is an anytime-you-feel-like-it wine, especially since the alcohol is only 5.5 percent.