Bogle Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc (2010)

While recently perusing the wine reviews that I've done for this website, I noted a few glaring omissions, both with respect to varietals and wine producing regions.  I have tasked myself with filling in the "holes," which is proving harder and harder to do because I have not had much free time to work on my blog recently.  Still, the job was made a little easier after Clare and I won a wine basket at a recent silent auction for a good cause.  The basket contained a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, which is a wine that is underrepresented in the reviews. 

I have previously reviewed a wine made with Sauvignon Blanc grapes, the Domaine de Chevilly Quincy (2009), which is produced in the Loire Valley of France.  I generally liked the wine, which was crisp and dry, full of grapefruit aromas and flavors with a little pepper or spice around the edges. 

The bottle in our basket was the Sauvignon Blanc (2010) from Bogle Vineyards, a family-owned vineyard and winemaker located in Clarksburg, California.   This bottle offered an opportunity to see the approach of a Californian wine producer to this green-skinned grape varietal. 

Bogle sourced the grapes that were picked between September 24, 2010 to October 15, 2010 from vineyards in Monterrey County and the Russian River Valley.  After the pressing, the juice is cold fermented in stainless steel tanks.  Winemakers use cold fermentation, which is simply allowing the fermentation to take place between 48 degrees and 55 degrees Fahrenheit, to heighten the flavors of the wine and protect the wine's crispness. 

These efforts are reflected in the Sauvignon Blanc.  The wine pours a light gold in color, just a few shades off of the label.  The winemaker colorfully describes the aroma as having two distinct components.  At first, the aromas include "lemon zest and freshly mowed grass." Thereafter, the aromas open up to "clean and refreshing crispness of the citrus fruit paired with just a tiny hint of spring sweet peas."  I definitely got the citrus, both the lemon zest and the citrus fruit; however, the freshly mowed grass and spring sweet peas were a little elusive. 

The winemaker describes the taste and body of the wine as follows, "[t]he mouthfeel, bracing with acidity, remains laced with touches of richer tropical pineapple fruit."  I guess I sensed pineapple, although, to me, the flavors followed the more traditional grapefruit, lime and green melon.  There were also strong flavors of pears up front and some grass or hay flavors in the finish. 

Bogle Vineyards suggests that the Sauvignon Blanc is best paired with "a wide range of appetizers and light dishes, especially fish and shellfish, spring greens, goat cheese and fruit salsas."  I paired this wine with the Pesce al Palmeritana.  The pairing worked well, even though the dish included olives and capers. 

Although Clare and I won this bottle as part of a silent auction, I have seen it available in stores.  It sells for approximately $8.00 a bottle. 

ENJOY!