Pairing Sauvignon Blanc

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New Zealand

In New Zealand, it’s that unmistakable whiff of grapefruit and sometimes pineapple that draws me in every time. In fact, I often find myself craving a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. I once read that you can pair Sauvignon Blanc with anything you could squeeze a lemon over. I have to say it’s completely true when the wine is from New Zealand.

One of my favorite pairings for Sauvignon is scallops. Their buttery mouth-feel is everything this wine needs to create a perfect push and pull of textures on the palate. Add the butter seared exterior and both aromatic and palate-tempting herbs, and you have Seared Scallops with Herb-Butter Pan Sauce. A perfect pairing.

2010 Brancott Sauvignon Blanc Brancott Estate - The nose showed chalky minerals, grapefruit, stone, cat pee (in a good way) and citrus. On the palate, I found sweet apple fruit with mineral, citrus and herbs. The acid balance of this wine was very stern at first, but it opened up nicely over the course of an hour. The finish was long and mouthwatering with grapefruit and lemon pith lingering for half a minute.

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Photo courtesy of Scott Phillips via Fine Cooking

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Comments

Racer56

137378 31

How could you leave out Chile?

Jun 01, 2012 at 11:57 AM
Eric Guido

Hand of Snooth Voice of Snooth

92549 59,616

It certainly wasn't on purpose. You know how it works. I taste at industry tastings, through submitted samples and purchases made through recommendations at local shops. When a wine sticks out, I pair it with a recipe (or two or three) to find good matches. I guess the PR machine for Chile hasn't been pushing much wine in my direction or the NYC wine stores that I frequent. With that said, I'll be happy to seek some out in the future. It is the beginning of summer after all and I love Sauvignon Blanc.

Jun 01, 2012 at 12:22 PM
Susanne-
Servin

637096 3

or Austria as a matter of fact..........

Jun 01, 2012 at 12:48 PM
redwine89

503255 74

I love me some New Zealand and Australian Sauvignon Blanc's I cant say anything bad about, they are freshing and delicious, makes you want to lay back in teh sun and lay like a turtle.

Jun 01, 2012 at 5:41 PM
wymankok

1098282 33

Sancerre FTW ..

Jun 01, 2012 at 6:49 PM
Eric Guido

Hand of Snooth Voice of Snooth

92549 59,616

Wow, I might have to do Pairing Sauvignon Blanc Part 2. Well, we still have a few weeks left to the Sauvignon Blanc GTI, I'm sure there will be much more to taste and i'll be happy to share my experiences.

Jun 01, 2012 at 9:00 PM
whitediamo-
nd

1035046 15

ok cos we kiwi wineproducers and consumers have a sense of humor we can offend the old world wine producers.I think calling a vintage "cat's pee" may have been more than a poke in the eye for some,I guess thats where your discription comes from.we can afford to be flipant when the wine tastes so fantastic ;-)

Jun 02, 2012 at 7:04 AM
Eric Guido

Hand of Snooth Voice of Snooth

92549 59,616

It was a fantastic wine. In school, you learn to describe certain aromas in certain ways and that's what I got. Like I tried to say in the note, it wasn't a bad thing. In fact, it added depth to the wine that it would have lack aromatically without it.

Jun 02, 2012 at 9:13 AM
Susanne-
Servin

637096 3

you misread my earlier comment - I said AUSTRIA not Australia!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jun 04, 2012 at 10:35 AM