The picture above has nothing to do with wine. Except . . . the perfect wine choice really depends on the circumstances. The sun was setting, it was a pleasant 72 degrees and a light sea breeze was blowing in from Boston Harbor. We needed something casual to sip while the sun set, but that would also pair well with the salad and salmon cakes that would soon follow.
What to do? A Sauvignon Blanc seemed like the right choice. It's great for an aperitif, and incredibly food friendly. Now, there are quite a few different styles of Sauvignon Blanc, but we chose a crisp, minerally Pouilly-Fumé. Since we were listening to the Red Sox game in the background I'll call the wine choice a "home run." More on that below.
First, an overview of Pouilly-Fumé. It's located in the easternmost portion of the Loire Valley (the "Upper Loire"), in just about the exact geographical center of France. This is a northern, cold weather climate and the soils are similar to those found in Chablis and Champagne. So this Sauvignon Blanc is different from those from New Zealand or California, which tend to have more of a "grassy" taste. Pouilly-Fumé peaks after two - three years, but you can keep it for five years or so.
Pouilly-Fumé is located on the Loire's eastern bank, and just across the river to the west is Sancerre. Not surprisingly, the wines from these two appellations are very similar. Those from Pouilly-Fumé are made from 100 percent Sauvignon Blanc, as are the white wines from Sancerre (which also makes some red wines from Pinot Noir). A key difference is that there is more of a mineral called silex in the Pouilly-Fumé soil, which tends to give it a flinty, smokey flavor.
Pouily-Fumé sometimes gets confused with Pouilly-Fuissé, but the two wines are made from different grapes in different regions. Pouilly-Fuissé is a Chardonnay-based wine made in Burgundy. Another source of confusion is the name Fumé Blanc - that's a marketing ploy used by some California producers; it's just what they call their Sauvignon Blanc to make it sound more impressive.
Wine of the Week. We tasted a 2016 La Craie Pouilly-Fumé (about $20 retail). This was a good wine, with notes of white fruit, citrus, honeysuckle and a touch of flint. It was nicely balanced, with good acidity and an interesting, medium-length finish. As is typical of colder climate wines, it had a relatively low alcohol level - 12.5 percent. This wine went nicely with some Comté cheese, was perfect with the salad and salmon cakes and the Red Sox won -- mission accomplished! (Sorry Twins fans.)
Some further thoughts. Both Pouilly-Fumé and Sancere are very versatile, food friendly wines. They pair well with seafood, scallops, poultry and pork. They're also great with a variety of cheeses, including Comté, Pecarino, Gruyère and Feta.
You'll generally find a variety of nice wines from these two appellations in the $20 to $30 range, although you can find some very expensive wines as well. Some good, widely available producers to look for are Pascal Jolivet and Domaine Delaporte.
Cheers!
Great information
Hope Boston is treating you well