Top 10 Sauvignon Blanc Producers

I am glad you mentioned that your list is a personal one and I am sure you are going to need a thick skin releasing one, lol :) My first reaction on this list is that I agree with your choice for Paul Cotat and Didier Dagueneau, two of France's very best Sauvignon producers. Willing to take the risk that all American's will hate me I would never ever put a single American producer in a Top Ten Sauvignon list. Coming to my own speciality, Italian wines, I understand you mention the Quarz of Cantina Terlano. However, having tasted so many Friulian Sauvignons (e.g. Vie di Roman's 2009 Piere Sauvignon) I would never put a SB from Alto Adige/Sudtirol in a Top Ten list if it means leaving out one of Friuli. Dog Point is an excellent NZ producer and also an underdog ... my choice would be a NZ SB from St. Clair Family Estate (Block 11 Snap Block or the Wairau Reserve) or from Cloudy Bay (too famous?). The same goes for SA's Mulderbosch: a quite decent producer, though they stand in the shadow of Neil Ellis or Tokara. Then again, no South American or South African SB would make it into my Top Ten SBs. You are so right mentioning that there are so many different styles of SB in the world. To each his or her own ! :)

Jun 12, 2012 at 5:31 PM

Interesting points Saffredi...I for one appreciate the diversity in a list like this. Also a big Neil Ellis fan here! Will have to try against the Mulderbosch.

Jun 16, 2012 at 2:30 PM

Looking for diversity in other contexts can be a good thing. Here, when it comes to SB, I'd say in the list above only two would make my top dozen and two more might make my top two dozen. 85% *or more* of the best SBs I've had come from France (am curious why no SB-centric blend from the Graves made the list). CA might have one or two. NZ won't have any for a few more decades, since they just don't yet get it, at least as represented by their export labels. And IMHO, Cloudy Bay is far worse than Dog Point.

Jul 17, 2012 at 12:42 PM

Welcome back D,

Good point about the absence of Graves, though all of these wines are less than $100.00, would be interesting to know the QPR superstar of Bordeaux white.

Jul 17, 2012 at 1:50 PM

As I curate a portfolio of wines designed for everyday enthusiasts, not collectors, I was surprised by the lack of Kiwi SB's. There's a lot more than just Cloudy Bay coming out of Marlborough - I like Saffredi's point about St. Claire, but would also add Staete Landt to that list.

dmcker - NZ doesn't get it yet? Beg to differ. It's just a specific style emanating from the land. I prefer to appreciate it for what it is - not to encourage global producers to unify around our a single taste profile.

Jul 18, 2012 at 7:59 PM

Viña Casas del Bosque, Sauvignon Blanc Reserva, valle de Casablanca, Chile.

Sep 10, 2015 at 11:05 AM