Winemaker Notes
On the nose, intense scents mingle with harmony. Minerality alternates with a vanilla under currant with maturing citrus notes that can also be detected on the palate. The powerful wood starts to melt in a round and lively mouth. Superb balance.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Spectator
There's complexity and depth to this racy, seductive white. With time in glass, layers of white peach, verbena and white blossoms emerge, coursing alongside fresh thyme, oyster shell minerality and briny saltiness. Shows plenty of zip through the long and textured finish.
-
James Suckling
A well-rounded, precise and focused Sancerre with aromas of quince peel, leaves, stones and hints of guava. It’s medium- to full-bodied with bright acidity and a dense core of juicy fruit and spices. Mouthwatering finish with excellent persistence.
-
Wine Enthusiast
This Sancerre is a delight. The gold-hued wine has a rich and perfumed nose of peach blossom, baked apple and self-confidence. Honeysuckle and orange blossom support complex orchard fruit on the palate whose finish is satisfying and tart-leaning.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.
Marked by its charming hilltop village in the easternmost territory of the Loire, Sancerre is famous for its racy, vivacious, citrus-dominant Sauvignon blanc. Its enormous popularity in 1970s French bistros led to its success as the go-to restaurant white around the globe in the 1980s.
While the region claims a continental climate, noted for short, hot summers and long, cold winters, variations in topography—rolling hills and steep slopes from about 600 to 1,300 feet in elevation—with great soil variations, contribute the variations in character in Sancerre Sauvignon blancs.
In the western part of the appellation, clay and limestone soils with Kimmeridgean marne, especially in Chavignol, produce powerful wines. Moving closer to the actual town of Sancerre, soils are gravel and limestone, producing especially delicate wines. Flint (silex) soils close to the village produce particularly perfumed and age-worthy wines.
About ten percent of the wines claiming the Sancerre appellation name are fresh and light red wines made from Pinot noir and to a lesser extent, rosés. While not typically exported in large amounts, they are well-made and attract a loyal French following.