Attributes:

Guenoc

Lake County, United States

Sauvignon Blanc

750 ML

2005: CGCW Rating: 86

clean, fresh

pleasant

2005: WineSpectator Rating: 85

light

2005: WineAndSpirits Rating: 85

clean, crisp

honeydew

2004: WineSpectator Rating: 85

green apple

2004: CGCW Rating: 86

ripe

2002: WineSpectator Rating: 83

bright

2002: WineSpectator Rating: 83

tart

floral

apple

2002: CGCW Rating: 83

muddled

citrus, grass, peach

Food Matches:

Comes mostly from California, France, New Zealand, and South Africa. Its highly acidic wines are often suggestive of herbs or grass. Light to medium bodied and usually dry, European versions are generally not oaky while California Sauvignon Blanc can take on many of the qualities of Chardonnay. France has two classic wine regions for the Sauvignon Blanc gape: Bordeaux and the Loire Valley The Bordeaux wine is called Bordeaux Blanc and the two best known of the Loire wines are called Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé. In Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is sometimes blended with Sémillon.

Lake County is one of the smaller inland wine regions in California. Surrounded to the west by Mendocino and Sonoma Counties, and to the south by Napa Valley, Lake County's small concentration of vineyards lie in the Clear Lake AVA. The vineyard's here are nestled between steep hills to the west the lake shore. Main varieties grown in this area are Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel.

Attributes:

Barton & Guestier

Bordeaux, France

Sauvignon Blanc

750 ML

1988: WineSpectator Rating: 78

straightforward

Food Matches:

A region in western France that grows famous red wines from the Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc grapes and white wines from Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Muscadelle grapes. Situated on the Atlantic coast, Bordeaux has a maritime climate with warm summers and fairly mild winters as well as an abundance of rain during harvest time. When young, the finest red Bordeaux wines have a deep cranberry hue and aromas of blackcurrants, plums, spice, cedar, and cassis. For the first ten years or so these wines can be very dry, with tannin masking the fruity flavors. Eventually the wines turn garnet, and develops an extraordinarily complex bouquet and flavor as well as softer tannins. The finest red Bordeaux wines still take 20 years or so before reaching their maturity. Two distinct red wine production zones exist within the Bordeaux region; the Left Bank and the Right Bank. The Left Bank vineyards are located west of the Garonne River and the Gironde Estuary, into which the Garonne empties. The Right Bank vineyards are east and north of the Dordogne River and east of the Grionde Estuary. Of the various wine districts on the Left and Right Banks, four are the most important for red wines: Haut-Médoc; Pessac-Leognan, St-Emilion, and Pomerol. For white wines, the most important are Graves and Pessac-Leognan.

Comes mostly from California, France, New Zealand, and South Africa. Its highly acidic wines are often suggestive of herbs or grass. Light to medium bodied and usually dry, European versions are generally not oaky while California Sauvignon Blanc can take on many of the qualities of Chardonnay. France has two classic wine regions for the Sauvignon Blanc gape: Bordeaux and the Loire Valley The Bordeaux wine is called Bordeaux Blanc and the two best known of the Loire wines are called Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé. In Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is sometimes blended with Sémillon.

Attributes:

Duckhorn Vineyards

Napa Valley, United States

Sauvignon Blanc

750 ML

2006: WineSpectator Rating: 90

bright

stylish

2005: CGCW Rating: 88

fat

herbal

2004: WineAdvocate Rating: 88

*-scented

2004: WineSpectator Rating: 89

lively

flinty, melon

concentrated

2004: WineAndSpirits Rating: 89

lively

simple

earth, grapey

fleshy

2004: CGCW Rating: 87

oak

sweet

2003: WineEnthusiast Rating: 89

clean, crisp

rich

grass, honey, lime, spicy, vanilla

2003: CGCW Rating: 92

complex, rich

oak

fruity, sweet

Food Matches:

This tiny strip of land just north of San Francisco is home to America’s most prestigious wineries. Its climate is ideal for viticulture. Ironically, it was deemed too ideal for some vintners, who have moved their vineyards from the valley’s flat plain to the hills in the east and west, adhering to the idea that grapes that struggle to grow yield better wine. The climate, soil, and individual wineries are enormously varied, so it’s impossible to identify a singular trait of Napa wines. In addition, nearly every noble grape is grown here, although Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon are the primary grapes. In the past, Napa’s wines have alternated between extremely fruity and fat to lean and subtle. Today the best Napa wines have achieved a balance between these extremes. Many are made to be drunk young and have abundant ripe fruit; others can be initially hard and tannic, but soften over four or five years to perfumed, cedary fruit. White Napa wines are excellent with fresh-grilled fish and chicken, but can also cope with more spicy and creamy flavors. Many Napa reds will overwhelm delicate cuisine, but rich red meat and cheeses do make good companions.

Comes mostly from California, France, New Zealand, and South Africa. Its highly acidic wines are often suggestive of herbs or grass. Light to medium bodied and usually dry, European versions are generally not oaky while California Sauvignon Blanc can take on many of the qualities of Chardonnay. France has two classic wine regions for the Sauvignon Blanc gape: Bordeaux and the Loire Valley The Bordeaux wine is called Bordeaux Blanc and the two best known of the Loire wines are called Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé. In Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is sometimes blended with Sémillon.