July Wine Night - Sauvignon Blanc

Host

Alissa

Date

July 9, 2010

Bottles

2006 Gordon Brothers Cellars - Kate
2008 Rapura Springs - Tom
2008 Chamarre Grand Reserve - Evan & Jess
2008 Bogel - Wil
2008 Nobilo Regional Collection - Ari
2008 Monkey Bay - Selina
2009 Francis Ford Coppola - Jon
2009 Puerta Viejo - Amanda
2009 Monkey Bay - Jamie
2009 Rock Rabbit - Derek & Joe
2009 The Infamous Goose - Tara
2009 Groth Vineyards - Sean & Tara
2009 Oyster Bay - Nicole
2009 Les Jamelles - Arianna
2009 Tablelands - Kait & Mike
2009 Monkey Bay - Dane
2009 Hay Maker - Nick

Sauvignon Blanc

Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety which originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape gets its name from the French word sauvage ("wild") and blanc ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in South West France. It is now planted in many of the world's wine regions, producing a crisp, dry, and refreshing white varietal wine. Conversely, the grape is also a component of the famous dessert wines from Sauternes and Barsac. Sauvignon blanc is widely cultivated in France, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil and California.

Depending on the climate, the flavor can range from aggressively grassy to sweetly tropical. Wine experts have used the phrase "crisp, elegant, and fresh" as a favorable description of Sauvignon blanc from the Loire Valley and New Zealand. Sauvignon blanc, when slightly chilled, pairs well with fish or cheese, particularly Chèvre. It is also known as one of the few wines that can pair well with sushi.

Along with Riesling, Sauvignon blanc was one of the first fine wines to be bottled with a screwcap in commercial quantities, especially by New Zealand producers. The wine is usually consumed young, as it does not particularly benefit from aging, except for some oak-aged Pessac-leognan and Graves from Bordeaux that can age up to fifteen years. Dry and sweet white Bordeaux, typically made with Sauvignon blanc as a major component, is the one exception.

The Results

WINNER: 2009 Les Jamelles Winery - 131 points out of 190
Producer: Les Jamelles Winery
Vineyard: Les Jamelles Winery
Country/State/Region: Vin de Pays d'Oc, France
Price: $11.99
Aroma: Citrus
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Light
Nose: Butter, Apple, Lemon
Taste: Green Apple
Finish: Short
Individual Points: 8, 9, 8, 6, 7, 5.5, 8.5, 7.5, 4.5, 5.5, 8, 8.5, 7, 9, 8, 6, 5.5, 1, 8.5


2009 Tablelands Wine Company - 130.5 points out of 190
Producer: Tablelands Wine Company
Vineyard: Tablelands Wine Company
Country/State/Region: Martinborough, New Zealand
Price: $11.99
Aroma: Floral
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Light
Nose: Butter, Honey, Apricot, Rose
Taste: Rose, Honey
Finish: Long
Individual Points: 7, 7, 6, 3, 6, 6, 6, 7, 6.5, 9, 8, 8, 7, 8, 6.5, 6.5, 7.5, 7

2009 Monkey Bay - 121 points out of 190
Producer: Monkey Bay Wine
Vineyard: Monkey Bay Wine
Country/State/Region: Monkey Bay, New Zealand
Price: $9.99
Aroma: Citrus
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Light
Nose: Lemon, Apple, Honey
Taste: Lemon, Honey, Apricot
Finish: Short
Individual Points: 7.5, 10, 6, 8, 5, 5, 3, 5, 6, 6, 2, 6, 6, 7, 7, 6, 8.5, 8, 9

2009 Hay Maker - 116.5 out of 190
Producer: Mud House Wines Ltd.
Vineyard: Mud House Wines Ltd.
Country/State/Region: Riverlands Estate, New Zealand
Price: $11.99
Aroma: Citrus
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Medium
Nose: Pear, Grapefruit, Honey
Taste: Grapefruit, Honey, Lemon
Finish: Long
Individual Points: 7, 2, 5, 5, 7, 2, 1, 7, 6, 5.5, 9, 5, 10, 10, 9, 6, 7, 5.5, 7.5

2008 Rapaura Springs Ltd. - 115.5 points out of 190
Producer:Rapaura Springs Ltd.
Vineyard: Rapaura Springs Ltd.
Country/State/Region: Spring Creek, New Zealand
Price: $16.99
Aroma: Citrus
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Medium
Nose: Pear, Grapefruit, Orange
Taste: Grapefruit
Finish: Short
Individual Points: 3, 4, 4, 4, 7, 8, 6, 5, 7, 9, 5, 8, 8, 5, 6, 7, 5.5, 6, 8

2009 Groth Vineyards - 104 points out of 190

Producer: Groth Vineyards and Winery
Vineyard: Groth Vineyards and Winery

Country/State/Region: Oakville, California

Price: $18.99

Aroma: Floral

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Light to Medium

Nose: Blue Cheese, Rose, Butter, Brass, Hay, Cheddar

Taste: Cheddar, Almond, Vinegar

Finish: Short

Individual Points: 5.5, 10, 9, 7, 6, 5.5, 5, 3, 4, 6, 7.5, 5, 6, 6.5, 5.5, 6.5, 4, 2, 5

2009 Oyster Bay - 102 out of 190
Producer: Oyster Bay Wines
Vineyard: Oyster Bay Wines
Country/State/Region: Oyster Bay, New Zealand
Price: $13.99
Aroma: Floral, Citrus
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Medium
Nose: Rose, Orange
Taste: Orange, Vanilla, Grapefruit, Lilac
Finish: Short
Individual Points: 4, 5, 6.5, 8, 7, 2, 2, 6, 3, 2, 10, 5, 7, 6, 6, 5.5, 7.5, 6.5, 3

2008 Chamarre Grand Reserve - 99.5 points out of 190

Producer: Chamarre/EMB

Vineyard: Chamarre/EMB

Country/State/Region: Vin de Pays d'Oc, France

Price: $16.99

Aroma: Citrus

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Light

Nose: Grape, Apple, Lime

Taste: Apple, Butter

Finish: Long

Individual Points: 4.5, 5, 8, 4.5, 2, 1, 7, 2, 1, 5, 7, 8, 4, 8, 7.5, 6, 6.5, 6.5, 6


2008 Bogel - 99.5 points out of 190

Producer: Bogel Vineyards
Vineyard: Bogels Vineyards

Country/State/Region: Clarksburg, California

Price: $13.99

Aroma: Citrus, Oak, Floral

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Light

Nose: Butter, Oak, Rose, Honey

Taste: Butter, Oak, Lime

Finish: Short

Individual Points: 7, 9.5, 4.5, 6, 2, 6, 2, 6, 9, 4, 6, 6, 4.5, 5, 6.5, 4, 4, 3.5

2008 Nobilo Regional Collection - 98. 5 out of 190
Producer: Nobilo Wine Group Limited
Vineyard: Nobilo Wine Group Limited
Country/State/Region: Auckland, New Zealand
Price: $13.99
Aroma: Citrus
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Full
Nose: Grapefruit, Lemon, Grass
Taste: Pear, Grapefruit

Finish: Long
Individual Points: 3, 5, 8, 6, 6, 2, 2, 4, 3, 2, 5.5, 5, 7.5, 6, 7, 7, 6, 8

2009 Francis Ford Coppola - 97.5 points out of 190

Producer: Francis Ford Coppola

Vineyard: Francis Ford Coppola

Country/State/Region: Geyserville, California

Price: $14.99

Aroma: Floral

Appearance: Lemon

Nose: Pine, Rose

Taste: Lime, Apricot, Sour Apple

Finish: Short

Individual Points: 3, 2, 3, 6.5, 7.5, 7, 7.5, 2, 7, 8, 5, 6, 5, 6, 5, 6.5, 5, 7.5, 6.5, 7, 5

2009 Puerto Viejo - 93 points out of 190

Producer: Vina Requingua
Vineyard: Vina Requingua

Country/State/Region: Curico Valley, Chile

Price: $12.99

Aroma: Citrus

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Medium

Nose: Butter

Taste: Coconut, Pineapple

Finish: Short

Individual Points: 2, 3, 1, 2.5, 1, 1.5, 5, 4, 8, 5, 6, 8, 6, 7, 6.5, 4, 7, 8, 7.5

2009 Monkey Bay Wine - 91.5 out of 190
Producer: Monkey Bay Wine
Vineyard: Monkey Bay Wine
Country/State/Region: Monkey Bay, New Zealand
Price: $9.99
Aroma: Spice
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Medium
Nose: Apricot, Jalapeno, Honey
Taste: Apple, Jalapeno
Finish: Long
Individual Points: 6, 2, 6, 6, 6, 2, 8, 1, 0, 6, 8, 5, 1, 6, 6, 6, 8.5, 6, 6.5

2009 Rock Rabbit - 90 points out of 190

Producer: Rock Rabbit Winery

Vineyard: Rock Rabbit Winery

Country/State/Region: Graton, California

Price: $9.99

Aroma: Citrus, Floral

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Medium

Nose: Lime, Grapefruit, Lemon, Butter, Rose, Nectar

Taste: Butter, Grapefruit, Lemon, Sour Apple

Finish: Short

Individual Points: 6.5, 8, 7, 9, 1, 1, 1, 5, 3, 4, 6, 7, 5, 5, 6, 4, 5, 3, 3.5

2009 The Infamous Goose - 81.5 points out of 190

Producer: Mother Goose Wines Ltd.
Vineyard: Mother Goose Wines Ltd.

Country/State/Region: Hawkes Bay, New Zealand

Price: $12.99

Aroma: Citrus

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Medium

Nose: Lime, Grapefruit

Taste: Pineapple, Pine, Grapefruit

Finish: Long

Individual Points: 4, 5, 2.5, 2, 2, 2, 3, 5, 3, 2, 4.5, 4, 8, 3, 5, 7, 5, 6, 6.5

2008 Monkey Bay Wine - 79 out of 190
Producer: Monkey Bay Wine
Vineyard: Monkey Bay Wine
Country/State/Region: Monkey Bay, New Zealand
Price: $9.99
Aroma: Floral
Appearance: Lemon
Body: Light
Nose: Pear, Grass
Taste: Grass, Butter, Sour Apple, Earth, Hay
Finish: Long
Individual Points: 2, 2, 6, 7, 5, 3, 2, 5, 3, 5, 4, 5, 2, 5.5, 5, 6, 5, 2, 4.5

2006 Gordon Brothers Cellars - 19 points out of 190

Producer: Gordon Brothers Cellars Inc.

Vineyard: Gordon Brothers Cellars Inc.
Country/State/Region: Pasco, Washington

Price: $14.99

Aroma: Spice

Appearance: Lemon

Body: Light

Nose: Sea Salt

Taste: Oil, Acetone

Finish: Long

Individual Points: 2, 1, 0, 1, 1, 1.5, 0, 0, 0, 0.5, 3, 0, 0.5, 1, 4, 5, 2, 1, 0, 0

Comments

By far the largest wine night we've ever had, with over 25 in attendance and 19 votes. (Derek and his friends left early because they were too cool for us, so their votes didn't count.) I have to say - we definitely hit the max amount of pours per bottle. 20 odd pours tapped each bottle out with a little more than a sip for each person.

Still, as evidenced by the photo above, everyone managed to still get pretty sloppy. And then they went in the pool! And then that ended really well! Just kidding - drunken swimming is safe and fine. You're sure to only have one concussion per. (WINK).

Jesse made his wine night debut - with a bottle of cider which he sneakily entered into the running. I mean, I thought it tasted great. A bit like green tea Snapple and I was all over giving that shit a 9.5. But Jamie and Evan weren't tricked. They both gave it a 0. Sauvignon Blanc doesn't taste like this, they said. (SNOBS) Still, the bottle came in FIRST PLACE. It was only then that Jamie read the label - 100% GRAPE JUICE.

Thanks, Jesse. Thanks.