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Tonight’s tasting was a globetrotting exercise, to see how this popular
white varietal, with origins in the Loire Valley and Bordeaux, has transplanted
to New World winemaking regions. It’s aromatic, assertive and sometimes
aggressive, which makes it a very easy grape to spot “blind”, as
it is so distinctive.
Generally regarded as a cool-climate grape, its characters are
generally associated with gooseberries, cut grass, blackcurrant
leaves, elderflower and nettles, even cat’s pee. Transported
to the New World, the grape takes on bigger and bolder, more pungent
flavours, sometimes green capsicum, beans and asparagus. In warmer
climes still, such as New Zealand’s North Island (Hawkes
Bay), or South Australia, the wines lose the aggression and the
flavours mutate to tropical fruit.
Sauvignon Blanc is an aromatic variety which produces a fresh,
vigorous fruit-driven style, so is best enjoyed within 2-3 years
of release. It’s not a grape that responds well to oak-ageing,
and what makes a tasting such as this so interesting, is that the
wines are very much an expression of where they are grown.
The Wines
1. Chateau de Putille Sauvignon Blanc 2004, Vin de Pays
du Jardin de la France (£4.40)
This Loire Valley country wine proved very popular. It’s
fresh, grassy and aromatic, with elderflower and gooseberry characters.
Has a touch too much residual sugar for CHP, but nevertheless showed
well. CHP 15+ Bin Ends 7 votes
2. Vin de Pays d’Oc Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Chateau de Pennautier (£4.50)
A second French country wine, from a much hotter climate. The nettley
grassy character has disappeared to produce a more rounded, less
assertive style that, nonetheless, was crisp and light, with smoky
characters. Not well-liked. CHP 15+, Bin Ends 0 votes.
3. Oxford Landing Sauvignon Blanc 2004, South Australia (£4.99)
A very popular brand by Yalumba, this was a fuller wine, with crisp
tropical fruit. I found the middle palate watery, lacking concentration
and there was a touch of unpleasant bitterness on the finish.
Disappointing. CHP 14+, Bin Ends 0 votes.
4. Brampton Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Western Cape, South Africa (£5.95)
The varietal character jumped out of the glass, and on the palate
there were pungent green fruit characters,with gooseberry and
spice. Assertive, with a good length of finish, this proved to
be a hit. CHP 17, Bin Ends 6.
5. Trio Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Concha y Tory Chile (£5.99)
Not all Sauvignon Blanc is what it says on the label, some is Sauvignon
Vert or Sauvignonasse, which are inferior varieties with slightly
different characteristics. This was, indeed, an oddity, with
vegetally, grassy green flavours, but without crisp definition.
I found this a little hollow, but the finish was reasonable.
CHP 15+, Bin Ends 1 vote.
6. Kendal-Jackson “Vintners Reserve” Sauvignon Blanc
2002 California (£5.99)
A hot climate Californian, which was riper, richer and more smoky.
On the palate, there were sweet tropical fruit flavours, but lacked
any dimension, depth or structure. The extra age had done this
wine no favours, as there was no trace of acidity. Pretty awful.
CHP 13, Bin Ends no votes.
7. Chateau Tour de Mirambeau 2003 Bordeaux (£6.99 Oddbins)
CHP has visited this property and is generally a big fan of its
wines. Not so this difficult hot 2003 vintage. Fat, alcoholic and
flabby, with some tropical fruit. In sum, a bloated monster. CHP
14, Bin Ends no votes.
8. Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Marlborough New Zealand (£7.99
widely available)
The classic Marlborough style shone through, with crisp, crunchy
fresh green pea and green bean fruit, spice and depth. Assertive,
excellent character, and widely available. Easily the best wine
of the night. CHP 17+, Bin Ends 11 votes.
9. Cuvee de Boisfleurs 2003 Dme Cailbourdin Pouilly-Fume (£10.95)
I chose this as a fuller, more “smoky” style, but again
the lousy 2003 vintage got in the way. Overbloated, fat and flabby,
with no elegance or finesse, so usually characteristic of this
style of wine. CHP 14+, Bin Ends 0 Votes
10. Ikon Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Nobilo Marlborough (£11.99
Sainsbury)
Intensely concentrated, with complex flavours of grapefruit, nettles
and elderflower, intermingled with pungent green capsicum. Quite
spicy, it incorporates some residual sweetness. It just tries too
hard to say “how beautiful I am”, and there are better
examples at this price point.
CHP 16+, Bin Ends 4 votes.
It’s always a fascinating exercise to contrast Old and New
World wine styles and, on this occasion, France was well and truly
thumped. This can partly be explained by the hot dry French vintage
o 2003, which was entirely unsuitable for making classic, crisp,
dry white wine.
Nevertheless, the examples from New Zealand and, for me, South
Africa, were streets ahead. So for quality regardless of price,
plump for New Zealand, but for value, with an eye on price, go
for South Africa.
Next Tasting:
29th July 2005
Annual Bin Ends BBQ
See email newsletter for booking details
Tickets: £15 per head
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