A Sinch for Sancerre-Lovers
Spring showers bring May menus, and a mighty thirst for the perfect Sauvignon Blanc to pair with them.
It's just another reason to double down on the white-hot Sauvignon Blanc category. Chardonnay’s once-overlooked cousin is having "a moment" and its popularity is exploding. The U.S. market for Sauvignon Blanc reached 16.4 million cases in 2020, up 33% in just 5 years, and continues grow in double digits.
Napa wineries are scrambling to buy acreage, tankers full of gooseberry juice are steaming across the Pacific, and prices of Sancerre are skyrocketing, when you can find it.
The frenzy is sending many searching for a new every-day favorite. For Sancerre fans, that favorite might just be in Val de Loire.
For one thing, Val de Loire is in Sancerre's back yard, with the best examples conveying the same terroir-specific markers. For another thing, Val de Loire Sauvignon still an amazing value.
Consider what you get for $20. With twenty bucks, you can get a mid-priced Val de Loire, OR the bottom-of-the-barrel Sancerre, or even Pouilly Fume (not to mention Napa or Sonoma).
There are good Val de Loire Sauvignons out there--we blind tasted them with our panel. But if you want one that is truly delicious, Baudry-Dutour "Le Petit Lieu-dit" is it.
Our tasting panel ranked it first place in a competitive set of 2019 Loire Valley Sauvignons of similar price point. It is a terrific wine, one that renews faith that you can still find amazing overachievers in the sizzling Sauvignon Blanc market.
One might expect great wines from Baudry-Dutour, the collaboration between Christophe Baudry (whose family has over 500 years in the region) and InterLoire leader, Jean-Martin Dutour.
Indeed, Baudry-Dutour goes the extra mile with "Le Petit Lieu-dit", which comes from a single plot on limestone and sandy soils, organically farmed. The wine opens with intense nose of wildflowers, herbs and grass, light/medium body with brightness and minerality dominating the finish.
The new 2021 "Le Petit Lieu-dit" has an updated graphic label which gives one more reason to love it.
It’s a rare find, a delicious over-achiever that casts a halo everywhere it goes.