Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc is a white grape planted throughout the world, and may also be labeled as Fumé Blanc. It is the signature wine of New Zealand, but is also a major player in the Loire, Bordeaux, Austria, Australia, Chile and California. Wines produced with Sauvignon Blanc can vary in style, from zippy and grassy to lush and tropical fruit-driven. Sauvignon Blanc is also a component of sweet white Bordeaux such as Sauternes and Barsac. You can use Wine Enthusiast’s online Buying Guide to find the top-rated Sauvignon Blanc among our extensive Sauvignon Blanc wine reviews and easy-to-use database. Our Sauvignon Blanc reviews will give you a general idea what to expect from wines made from Sauvignon Blanc, and will help you find one that best suits your needs.
Mt. Difficulty 2001 Sauvignon Blanc (Central Otago)
- $16
Hard to believe there’s no oak aging or lees contact, it’s so incredibly rich and creamy. Offers ripe, fruity flavors of peaches and sweet apples, although the wine is bone-dry, with excellent acidity. Concentrated, dense and opulent, it’s a real treat to the palate.
— S.H.
(11/15/2002)
Te Kairanga 2001 Sauvignon Blanc (Martinborough)
- Best Buy
- $14
Unusually lush, even for this vintage, it starts with pronounced aromas of limes and lemons, fresh green apples, and juniper berries, and turns luscious in the mouth. Partial barrel fermentation and lees aging create a creamy, smoky mouthfeel, while the fruity flavors are volcanic. But it’s dry and elegant. Virtually flawness Sauvignon Blanc.
— S.H.
(11/15/2002)
Villa Maria 2001 Clifford Bay Reserve Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough)
- $29
Opens with a powerful explosion of lime, grass, gooseberry and apple aromas. In the mouth, it shows the fantastic concentration and extraction of an atom bomb, yet it’s balanced, complex and harmonious. It’s quite dry, with extraordinarily high acidity.
— S.H.
(11/15/2002)
Mayacamas 2002 Sauvignon Blanc (Napa Valley)
- $20
One of the best Sauvignons of this or any vintage, a brilliant and evocative wine of great style and flair. Powerfully dry, with citrus, fig, apple and peppery spice flavors and a lush overlay of oak. Compelling for its intensity and complexity.
— S.H.
(12/15/2004)
Robert Mondavi 2002 To Kalon Vineyard Reserve Fumé Blanc (Napa Valley)
- Editors' Choice
- $35
Fairly oaky, but in between the wood grain are aromas of stone-encrusted peach and pungent citrus. A model fumé-style wine that will suit grilled shrimp or lobster like a fine-fitting suit. The flavors of lemon curd, grapefruit and pineapple are rock solid, while the feel from front to back is ideal.
— W.E.
(7/1/2005)
Flora Springs 2004 Soliloquy Sauvignon Blanc (Oakville)
- Editors' Choice
- $25
Soliloquy was a hit from the very start and the wine has become steadily more interesting and complex as the sourcing shifted to Oakville. Now 100% single-vineyard Sauvignon Blanc from the Musqué clone, it’s dry, elegant and crisp, with a ripe finish to the fig, Key lime and white peach flavors. Sur lies aging adds a mouthwatering creaminess.
— S.H.
(7/1/2006)
Henri Bourgeois 2005 Le M.D. de Bourgeois Sauvignon Blanc (Sancerre)
- $24
Gorgeous, concentrated, ripe fruit show both the quality of this wine and the extra warmth of 2005. The MD is the top cuvée from the Bourgeois vineyard. It’s dense and ripe, with almost exotic fruit flavors, and finishes generous and fruity. Imported by Monsieur Touton Selection Ltd.
— R.V.
(8/1/2006)
Brander 2005 Au Naturel Sauvignon Blanc (Santa Ynez Valley)
- Editors' Choice
- Online Exclusive
- $30
Brander’s stainless steel fermented Sauvignon is an exciting wine, simply brilliant in pure fruit and mouthwatering acidity. It’s as fresh as a harvest morning, with intense flavors of lemongrass, gooseberry, tangerine zest, green grass and vanilla. Certainly at the top of its class.
— S.H.
(11/15/2006)
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The bold, fruity scent and lingering finish evoke berries and bananas…
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