International Sauvignon Blanc Day

A little about Sauvignon Blanc…

Originating in the Val de Loire region of France, the earliest recording of the varietal was in 1534 by Francois Rabelais in his book, Gargantua. The green skinned grape, deriving its name from the word ‘Sauvage’ (meaning ‘wild’ in French) has become an international icon, with over 298,000 tons crushed in New Zealand alone in 2024. Thriving in Bordeaux and the Loire and for the last 40 years New Zealand, it’s also produced successfully in Chile, California, Australia and South Africa.

There are two very distinct styles produced; a dry, light to medium bodied, unoaked style we see from the ‘Old World’ which is often aromatic and structured with delicate elderflower and petrichor notes, and the ‘New World’ style with bold gooseberry, green pepper and asparagus aromas leaping out of the glass.

Then a sweet style, cultivated with noble rot that concentrates sugars and acidity in the grapes (crucial for balance) and offering luscious aromas of orange marmalade, ginger, pineapple and honeysuckle to the wine. The most prestigious example of this style hails from Sauternes, a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. These rich and revered wines are extraordinarily complex and age worthy.

A wonderful affinity with food

With Sauvignon’s Blanc natural high acidity, it is immensely food friendly and particularly perfect to cut through creamy or fatty dishes. It also has great intensity so won’t be overwhelmed by punchy flavours. Match dry styles with duck or pork charcuterie, asparagus tempura, tagliatelle carbonara or mature goat’s cheese. For the sweet styles, try salty blue cheeses such as Roquefort or Picón Bejes-Tresviso.

Service temperature:

7 to 10 degrees Celsius

One of our favourites:

Domaine de Laulan Sauvignon

A pure expression of the varietal, with notes of flowering currants and elderflower on the nose, crunchy green apple fruit on the palate and a lingering citrus finish. This wine is fresh, clean and delightfully uncomplicated.

Dubbed the brains behind the appellation by Paul Strang in his book, The Wines of South-West France, the charismatic Gilbert Geoffroy (hailing from Chablis) makes benchmark Sauvignon for Domaine de Laulan. Famed for his expertise, Geoffroy is known as the “Pope of Sauvignon”.

£14.03 (Original price was £16.50)