Bordeaux Wine Guide: Sauvignon Blanc
Although from a qualitative point of view (and as an addict of sweet wine) I find Semillon to be the most important variety in Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is perhaps the more commercially significant of the two. It may only play a minor role in Sauternes, as a blending partner whose purpose is to inject the wines with vigour and lift (the sole exception to this rule is the aforementioned L’ Extravagant from Château Doisy-Daëne), but in the dry white wines of Bordeaux it plays a more significant role.
This is true whether the wine originates from the Graves vineyards, or the more exalted enclave of Pessac-Léognan, the Entre-Deux-Mers or indeed other regions, such as the Haut-Médoc. Here Château Lynch-Bages, Château Talbot and Château Margaux (pictured), among others, produce Sauvignon-dominated white wines alongside their more famous red wines. The last of the three estates mentioned is notable for producing Pavillon Blanc de Château Margaux, a cuvée generally regarded (and indeed marketed) as 100% Sauvignon Blanc. There are in fact Semillon vines planted among the Sauvignon Blanc in the vineyard, evidence of the difficulty distinguishing between different varieties when purchasing newly grafted pieds at the nursery, but the pickers know which vines to harvest for this cuvée. There is enough to produce about two barrels (450 litres), and I understand it is routinely excluded from the pure Sauvignon cuvée. Meanwhile, over by the Dordogne, Sauvignon Blanc can be found planted around St Emilion, albeit in small quantities. Notable wines that feature this variety include Clos Nardian from Jonathan Maltus and Château Monbousquet Blanc from Gerard Perse, and there are also vines at Château Magrez Fombrauge and Château Faugères.
The Wines
The style of wine is different to that found in the variety’s spiritual home, the Loire Valley. Although an aromatic variety there it – in the hand of the best growers – translates terroir very well, with flint (silex) and limestone (mainly Kimmeridgian terres blanches but to a lesser extent also Oxfordian caillottes) giving two distinct styles. Here in Bordeaux there is a third style, one that reflects the soils which tend towards more gravel and sand. It is a softer style, less cutting and to my palate less thrilling than the very best wines of the Loire Valley.
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