White Bordeaux

Dry white Bordeaux is one of the most overlooked wines. And, frankly, the winemakers in the region probably have themselves to blame.  Much is produced as $10 daily drinking wine in the Entre Deux Mers, and at it's best, it's a nice wine of moderate acid that pairs fine with a wide range of Tuesday nigh fare. Within Graves, the big names make some impressive wine - but often throw it in a lot of new oak and make big, unbalanced wines. And for many producers, it's secondary to their red wines. And, a number of producers in the Sauternes region (arguably the world's best/most complex "sweet wines" come from here) do a dry white wine. Again, these are usually not their primary focus, but where part of their fruit (often the younger vines, subpar fruit) end up.

Well, tonight proved my doubts about the region very wrong.  We opened a 2013 Clos des Lunes Lune d'Argent. At six years of age, it's still quite young and primary. Made of 70% semillon and 30% sauvignon blanc, the winemakers found an exquisite balance between the mineral weight of the semillon and the bright, acidic fruit of the sauvignon. They used some oak, but it was seamlessly integrated. The fruit was extensive, as was the seawater/mineral nature. The mouthfeel of waxy semillon was clear, and it seems it went at least partially malolactic, but that only resulted in a creamier mouthfeel and increased complexity without imbuing it with the buttery and yogurt notes that mar many a wine. Priced in the high $20's, this is not a cheap wine - but nor is it in the three figures like many of its higher-browed cousins.  Get as much as you can - and enjoy it with a range of food, including chicken, seafood, pork, and cheeses.