The California CocktailFor decades Chardonnay has been the most popular of all white wines but this is now changing as Sauvignon Blanc is capturing the fancy of wine drinkers all over the world at an amazing rate and has Chardonnay nervously looking over it's shoulder. There are numerous reasons for Sauvignon Blancs meteoric rise in popularity, as wine drinkers around the world make the move to drier wines, Sauvignon Blanc fits perfectly. Sauvignon Blanc make a refreshing wine that is lighter in body and flavor than Chardonnay almost always dry. It is a wine of great freshness, brightness and natural acidity making the wine quite invigorating. The allure of Sauvignon Blanc is also that the grape is heavily planted and successfully grown in many parts of the world, with each area adding its distinctive flavors profiles from the different soil compositions and weather conditions.Sauvignon Blanc grown in California, Australia and Bordeaux France can be very expressive and at its ripest form {but still dry!}from the consistent and warm weather. Sauvignon Blanc can be made unadulterated/no oak that yields a wine that is light and crisp, or barrel fermented in oak for a richer, rounder and more powerful wine. Other areas that produce outstanding Sauvignon Blanc are the Loire Valley of France and New Zealand where the wines are zesty and bright and almost never see any oak. The fact that the grape is so widely planted and made so successfully as well as being less expensive than Chardonnay make it readily available and affordable, but no less noble. The many floral flavors and aromas of Sauvignon Blanc range from wild herbs, the full range of citrus, lemon, lime, grapefruit, sometimes hints of apricot, white flowers, chalk and earth tones. Sauvignon Blanc is so versatile that it can be served with almost any foods outside of meat dishes. In today's world it is the perfect starter wine for any occasion and in many areas of the world has taken the place of distilled sprits as the drink of choice as a cocktail or aperitif; this is especially true in California.
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