BIG NEWS! We have some new curated mixed cases from Lifford for the fall! We have Fall Favourites, Italian Cult Whites, October Organics, Fall French Reds, South Africa Mixed reds, etc. Lots of great wines to get you through the cooler weather. Follow this link for more details and you can order them directly through our Shopify site here.

Then it’s on to our main event: Sauvignon Blanc!

Well, it’s not the best Sauvignon Blanc weather out there, but let’s be honest, Sauvignon Blanc fans drink Sauvignon Blanc all year through rain and sleet and snow. AND we just got some great new bottles in. So let’s talk Sauv Blanc this week.

Thanks to a few really really big brands from New Zealand like Kim Crawford, Sauvignon Blanc’s popularity skyrocketed since the 90’s through the 2000’s. But since Kim Crawford sold out to Constellation they’ve scaled it to industrial levels and it’s become a caricature of itself, similar to what Yellowtail and Wolfblass did to Australian Shiraz years earlier. So the mainstream profile of New Zealand Sauv Blanc developed into this exaggeration, purposely done with selected yeast strains to emphasize the over the big gooseberry, fresh cut grass, grapefruit notes, along with a pile of extra tartaric acid to balance out the extra sweetness of the style. And many people dig this kind of Sauv Blanc, and that’s cool, but the downside is that it’s become so popular in the mainstream that many people don’t know what Sauv Blanc actually is…or at least what it was before the big New Zealand bomb dropped. So this week is an exploration of great Sauv Blanc, for Sauv Blanc lovers, by a Sauv Blanc lover (aka me).

First thing is that Sauvignon Blanc’s home is France. That is to be revered as the benchmark. Not to say other places can’t do it really well, but the Loire Valley and Bordeaux should be seen as the reference points for the varietal. Within the Loire Valley, Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé would be motherlands of the grape, and less popularly, but just as importantly, Bordeaux. Although many White Bordeaux are not 100% Sauvignon Blanc and have a percentage of Semillon blended in, the mineral rich gravelly soils work wonders with the varietal. So today we have 6 Sauvignon Blanc wines, 3 from France, 3 from the rest of the world with a brief note on each, starting with the most famous: Sancerre.

JOSEPH MELLOT, SANCERRE ‘LA CHATELLENIE’, FRANCE 2019 | $34.99 x`12

Maison Joseph Mellot is one of the oldest continuously operating family wineries in all of France. In 2013 we had a 500th anniversary celebration for the winery here in Ottawa at Play Food & Wine with the Mellot family who were touring Canada for their big milestone. This isn’t just one of the pioneering wineries, it’s also super delicious. They own vineyards throughout the Loire, but they are based in the town of Sancerre and it’s where their main vineyards are. This is a great example of what Sancerre’s brand of Sauvignon Blanc is all about: mineral and complex from the flinty soils. Citrusy and fresh from the climate with perfectly balanced acidity. And nuanced with the nice herbaceous notes that the varietal is known for. Grassy, citrusy, hints of tropical fruit with elegant balance acidity with lingering minerality. Perfectly classic Sancerre, and a benchmark for the grape varietal.

CHATEAU GRAND RENOM, BORDEAUX, FRANCE 2019 | $19.99 x12

The Grand Renom vineyard and cellar was started in 1861 by an Italian family who grew grapes, grains, and raised cattle on their 36 hectares. Over the years grape growing expanded over the property and Moueix family purchased it in 1990. Their Bordeaux Blanc is 100% Sauvignon Blanc aged on the lees in stainless steel. It’s planted on north-facing clay and limestone soils. This helps preserve freshness (as opposed to being on the south facing side for more sun exposure and ripening). The minerality of the soils comes through along with the preserved freshness of the north aspect slopes. Classic Bordeaux: a little more austere than Sancere. Mineral driven with some backing notes of tropical fruit and fine herbs. And a great value at just $20.

BERNARD DEFAIX, SAINT BRIS, FRANCE 2019 | $27.99 x12

Most wine lovers know that Burgundy Reds are only Pinot Noir (and Gamay when blended for Passe-tout-grains) and Burgundy Whites are only Chardonnay (or Aligoté in the lesser appellation areas). But what not many people know is that there is also one special area of Burgundy that is entirely Sauvignon Blanc!! WHAT?? YES! …Noooo! FOR REAL? YES!! It’s called Saint Bris. If you ever see a bottle of that…It ain’t Chardonnay, it’s Sauv Blanc! Maybe it’s only me who gets excited about nerdy wine things like this, but why does a whole region (Burgundy) focus essentially only on Chardonnay….but then one whole village/area pivots entirely to Sauvignon Blanc? Just a bit south of Chablis where Chardonnay is King and just a bit north of the upper Loire Valley where Sauvginon is King, this appellation was introduced in 2003 after decades of high quality Sauvignon Blanc production there. You have heavily mineral soils that are closer to that of Chablis limestone than of Sancerre flint, and also a bit more of that northern France cooler climate than a warm Loire Valley climate. So what you get is this slightly subdued, but very complex Sauv Blanc that isn’t as robust and fruity as many Loire Valley versions, but very mineral and nuanced with understated elegance. A delicious wine entirely in its own right, but a must-try for any Sauvignon Blanc lover to explore the reaches of where Sauvignon Blanc comes from.

HONIG, SAUVIGNON BLANC, NAPA VALLEY, CALIFORNIA | $35.99 x12

Now-a-days we don’t really think of California as Sauvignon Blanc central…but back in the 1930s when top Bordeaux winemaker Andre Tchelistcheff was brought over to Napa as a consultant winemaker and after assessing the terroir, he proclaimed it to be essentially the new Bordeaux. It was similar climatically and the soils were suited to the Bordelais varietals including Sauvingon Blanc and Semillon for white. So many of the pioneering Napa Valley wineries planted Sauv Blanc and Semillon in addition to their reds. When Chardonnay started become popular in the late 70’s through the 1990’s, increasingly wineries would pull up their Sauvignon Blanc vines and plant the more popular Chardonnay. And now, unfortunately many wineries are pulling up their Chardonnay to plant the more financially lucrative Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s sad, but I guess when a Napa winery gets $100 a bottle for their Cab and $50 a bottle for their Chardonnay it makes sense. Anyways, there aren’t many original Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc producers anymore. I can only think of 3 off the top of my head (Honig, Cakebread, and Duckhorn). So what we have here is pretty special. Honig has been a winery for exactly 40 years, and they were grape growers long before that. Michael Honig took over the family vineyard when his father passed away and fulfilled his dream of evolving past grape farmer to winery owner. Since then built the Honig name into one of the most critically acclaimed California Sauvignon Blancs and one of the most popular with restaurants. AND they were one of the pioneering organic producers in Napa Valley…AND one of the pioneering solar powered wineries. When you dig into it, there’s a lot the Honig family was on the cusp of. And in addition to all that cool background info, the wine is absolutely delicious. I’m actually having a glass while writing this note and I’m salivating between sips. If you’ve never had true Napa Sauvignon Blanc, it’s nothing like New Zealand. If anything, it’s closest to Bordeaux. Softer acidity, plush tropical fruit, but a pleasantly bitter back end and finish that’s a mix of bittersweet beeswax, hay, and grass. I haven’t had a glass of this wine in a while and right now it’s one of my favourite Sauv Blancs I’ve had in a while.

STAETE LANDT, ‘ANNABEL’ SAUVIGNON BLANC, MARLBOROUGH, NEW ZEALAND 2019 | $24.99 x12

I’d be remiss not to include a great New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, even considering my intro. But for as long as I’ve been working with Lifford (14 years) this has been one of the all-time best sellers and I’d suggest the archetype of what perfect New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc is meant to be. It’s not Sancerre, but it certainly nods towards it. It’s not a big modern, overly acidic and grassy gooseberry Kiwi Sauv Blanc, but it certainly has the unctuousness of one. It’s perfectly in the middle of a great french and great Kiwi SB. And the winemaker Ruud Maasdam is a Dutch ex-pat who moved his family to New Zealand from Europe to pursue exactly that dream. Think nice ripe grapefruit, some fresh grass, and sea salt flakes. There’s an almost saline minerality with this wine that’s so captivating savoury. Another absolute must-try for Sauvignon fans.

REDSTONE, SAUVIGNON BLANC, NIAGARA PENINSULA, ONTARIO 2019 | $21.95 x12

Lastly, we’re coming home. Sauvignon Blanc does well in Ontario, so long as it doesn’t get killed over the winter. Many of the more delicate varietals are extra susceptible to “winter kill” of the vines in our Canadian winters. But when protected, and done well, Ontario is quite good for Sauvignon Blanc and Ontario’s cool climate and mineral soils are exactly what the grape needs. Redstone is the sister winery of Tawse and they have experimented with several different styles of Sauvignon Blanc over the last couple years (super lean mineral, and oak aged Fumé Blanc) and now this slightly riper, really pretty version with fine herbs and nice tropical fruit. There’s not a lot of Sauvignon Blanc in Ontario, but this is one of the best.

FOR THOSE IN THE OTTAWA AREA:
We’re offering a mixed 6pack with 1 bottle of each of these wines through the Byward Wine Market. Unfortunately this is not offered through Lifford at the moment, but if you’re in Ottawa you can order this for pickup or delivery within the city. The only difference is we don’t have the Mellot Sancerre in yet, we still have the last few bottles of Alain Guneau Sancerre in the province (as pictured above). Once that is sold out we will move onto the Mellot. If you love Sauvignon Blanc and want to try out this mixed case just follow this link to order here.

Just a reminder that the order deadline for Friday case delivery is Wednesday at noon. Reach out if you have any questions, and check out the archive of past FEATURES if you’re interested in other recommendations. Lastly, please feel free to forward this to anyone in Ontario who may be interested in home wine delivery and follow us on instagram for daily wine content at @capitalwine.ottawa!