Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Guy Saget, Vouvray 2004

I have long been a fan of Chenin Blanc in general, and Vouvray (Loire) in particular. Chenin Blanc-based wines are often under valued -- a good thing for the wine lover in pursuit of good value! There seem to be two reasons why Chenin Blanc is not more popular. First, a lot of sweet bulk wine used to be made with the grape. Second, a lot of people simply avoid sweet wine. In my opinion, people who dislike sweet wine, should give it a second (or perhaps a third) chance!

The truth about Chenin Blanc though, is that it is not always sweet. Chenin Blanc-based wines range from fairly dry to intensely sweet botrytis affected wine that can be wonderful with foie gras!

The Guy Saget Vouvray, 2004 is a fresh, fruity well made wine with crisp apple overtones. It is a delight to drink this cheerful and lively wine. There seemed to be almost a hint of a sparkle at the front of my tongue. I bought it for about $10. However, for anyone looking only for very dry white wine, avoid it. This wine is well made and to my mind delicious, but it is definitely not dry though certainly not so sweet that it would ever be classified as a dessert wine. Guy Saget makes a lot of different Loire grapes, and if the quality of the other offerings are as good as this, it will certainly be a producer that I will continue to seek out. Recommended!

If you find the Guy Saget Vouvray hard to find, but would like to try a Chenin Blanc, you can often find one from Dry Creek Vineyards. Also, I have enjoyed a lot of Chenin Blanc from South Africa where it is called Steen.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

They sell it at Trader Joe's.