As part of her research Jacqueline has been tasting a lot of Sancerres recently and this has led her to reassess Loire Sauvignon Blanc.
‘First, I must admit that my feelings about Sauvignon Blanc as a grape variety have evolved – largely due to the Sancerres I’ve been tasting for the update of my Loire book. I basically wrote off Sauvignon as a very useful grape, one making an an easy wine to like and an easy one to understand but not a varietal that would really express pedigree, raciness, majesty. Added to that, I was underwhelmed by the overall quality of wines in the Sancerrois as well as the lack of dynamism and vitality as compared to the wines and the vignerons of Muscadet and Anjou.
After tasting hundreds of Sancerres – with more to come – for Loire 2, I have new respect for both the grape and the region. The quality of Sancerre wines has improved exponentially – and I know I’ll spend a great deal of time talking about it in the book. And my mind has been blown by the elegance, the beauty, the gravitas of more than a few of the Sancerres I’ve tasted. (The fact that a number of them become Wines of the Week testifies to that.)
As great as PC and GC Chablis, the wines they most remind me of. Look at a map and consider the soils and that’s no surprise. The two are practically kissing cousins.
The big difference is cépage. And what I find breathtaking about fine Chablis and fine Sancerre is that the grape fades to the background. Those simple, pungent varietal flavors that make Sauvignon blanc the first grape debutant tasters can recognise blind is replaced by a ripe, mellow yet fresh vinosity, a resilient support for achingly exquisite minerality, of stone, of tisane and citrus zests. These are wines that have their place alongside the best Chablis.’ (www.jacquelinefriedrich.com/bio.htm)
I agree with Jacqueline – Sauvignon Blanc is not my favourite white Loire variety. It has neither versatility, complexity, fascination nor the incredible ability to age for decades even centuries, that Chenin Blanc has. Professionally it is often a very tiring variety to taste: fatiguing your palate and making you crave for something else.
She is spot on that the Sancerres that are worth drinking completely transcend Sauvignon Blanc’s two-dimensional varietal character – at their worst the rank reek of cat’s pee with or without a gooseberry bush. The best Sancerres often have a thrilling minerality and precision of flavour found in many of the wines Sarah and I tasted in August. With age, as was the case with the Vacheron 1996 Les Romains with its honeyed complexity, the variety becomes almost undetectable blind. This is equally true for the best of the Sauvignons from the Cher Valley.
In contrast the Sauvignon Blancs that I tasted this week at the annual Wines of Chile tasting in London were rooted and confined by their varietal character.
I certainly recommend adding Jacqueline’s site to your favourites and, while you are doing this, to add Chris Kissack’s The Wine Doctor. Chris is an intensive care doctor in Edinburgh, so quite how he finds the time to update his site so regularly with such detailed and extensive postings is a considerable puzzle.
Jacqueline Friedich: The Wine Humanist:
www.jacquelinefriedrich.com
Chris Kissack: The Wine Doctor: www.thewinedoctor.com
4 comments:
"updating her classic A Wine & Food Guide to the Loire"
Wow, this is great news! I'm hardly the only one who would love to see this classic updated.
I'm afraid I don't know when it is due to be published. My guess is certainly not before autumn 2009.
A new edition is good news. With such words from both you and Jacqueline I'm quite tempted to try again with Sauvignon. Apart from some Dezats, I have been quite underwhelmed with the grape: I don't dislike it, but neither have I enjoyed it enough to buy it regularly. Must do some research now on what to buy...
Geshtin: worth trying a range of Sauvignon Blancs both from the Central Region and from Touraine.
Post a Comment