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We've worked with brothers Jean-Marie and François Cherrier for more than 20 years, and their wines remain one of the benchmarks for value in Sancerre. For us, they've long served as a lodestar for what classic Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc should be. It was great to reconnect with the family at Wine Paris earlier this year and taste through the new releases. As the next generation becomes increasingly involved in the domaine, the Cherriers are finding exciting new ways to build upon a tradition that has made them one of our most trusted partners. The 2025 vintage was a challenging one, with reduced yields across much of the region. Fortunately, our long-standing relationship has helped preserve the majority of our allocation, even if quantities are a bit tighter than usual. The new Sancerre captures everything we love about the estate's style. Aromas of Meyer lemon and ruby red grapefruit lead the way, followed by hints of nectarine, wild thyme, and white flowers. The palate shows impressive ripeness and polish, delivering generous texture and concentration without sacrificing freshness or balance. Year after year, this remains one of the most re-ordered wines in the category. If you've yet to discover what makes Cherrier such a perennial favorite, the outstanding 2025 vintage is the perfect place to start.

Welcome to the newest addition to our Rendez-Vous collection: Touraine Sauvignon Blanc. Why did we choose Touraine? Simply put, it offers one of the greatest values for Sauvignon Blanc anywhere in the world. The region's clay-limestone and calcareous soils share many similarities with those of its far more famous neighbor a couple of hours to the east—Sancerre. As prices in Sancerre have continued to climb, many of its top producers have turned to Touraine to craft their value-focused wines. We realized we could do the same. So we reached out to one of our longtime partners with a simple proposition: let's take one of our favorite everyday Touraine bottlings and create the next Rendez-Vous. If you've been a fan of Roches Touraine over the years, here's a little secret—you've found it. This wine is the foundation for the project. I've been buying and tasting these wines for well over a decade, and they've never disappointed. The 2024 is everything I look for in Touraine: sleek, vibrant, and mineral-driven, with notes of lemon oil, fresh verbena, and a lightly chalky finish. There's also a subtle tropical lift that I always love in Touraine Sauvignon Blanc. It gives the wine an open, inviting personality that's equally at home on a Tuesday night or at a weekend gathering. That's exactly what Rendez-Vous is meant to be: exceptional quality at an everyday price. One of our goals with this label is to redefine what a daily-drinking wine can be by leveraging the long-standing relationships we've built with outstanding growers to deliver remarkable value without compromise. We hope this new Rendez-Vous earns a permanent place at your table. Santé—we have a feeling we'll be seeing you again soon.

This is one of my favorite Sancerre estates and they never disappoint. Their 2024, is another winner. It combines the classic citrus fruit we're accustomed to with pleasant tropical notes thanks to the generosity of the vintage. Simply put, it's complex, satisfying and outstanding as always.

From Shamrock and Te Whare Ra vineyards located in 70% Awatere and 30% Wairau, with a savvy 18% barrel fermentation. Holy moly, this is simply heavenly, with starfruit, pulpy pomelo segments and glistening limes. Summer frangipanis and lotus flowers. Citrus manages to have the high tones of lime but base tones of ruby grapefruit, and acidity hums, grounded deep within the fabric of the wine. It's slippery, slightly salty and luxurious while uplifting. Every touch point of flavour and texture has been considered and if this is not on your wine list or in your cellar as a modern day representation of Marlborough's innate ability with sauvignon blanc than shame on you. Flippin' heck it’s good. Closure: Screw cap. 13.5% alcohol.

Compelling smoky mineral and sultry lemon characters ebb and flow across the nose and palate with a gorgeous crunch of acidity and texture. Very long and delicious. (2024 DWWA)

Ah, a breath of fresh air, as this vivid, appetizing and mouthwatering wine counters the prevailing Napa trend of rich, full-bodied whites. An almost electric feel and vibrant citrus light up the palate. Flavors of grapefruit, lemon zest, green-apple skin and flint keep you coming back for more. Drink now.

Perfumed and aromatic, this opens with soaring floral notes typical of the vintage before revealing additional layers of delicate complexity with a hint of smoke and sweet calamansi. The palate is refined, elegant and detailed but also quietly powerful with linear acidity which tapers down to a grainy, pithy grapefruit-infused finish. *Recommended, Top Value* (SW)

The 2024 Pouilly-Fumé has incredible purity, delightful texture, tranquility and no edges. This is a cloud of delicious Sauvignon Blanc. It's very approachable and fresh. (RG)

Jubilant yellow apple and freshly-sliced Anjou pear aromas lift from the glass along with subtle undertones of flint and wild herbs. Lemon citrus washes across river stone and completes with a saline-sprinkled finish. Pair with fried anchovies, Caesar salad and grilled chicken. (RS)

Quivering with fragrant florals, fresh orchard fruits and passionfruit nuance that enrobes the soft, succulence of the palate. Expressive and complex with a fine seam of grapefruit acidity that carries the finely-tuned aromas to the finish. *Platinum Medal - 2026 Decater World Wine Awards*

Domaine Fournier, known for its signature site-specific and soil-driven Sancerres, has afforded us the opportunity to feature its flagship cuvée, Les Belles Vignes, in this month's club. Like all white Sancerre, it is 100% Sauvignon Blanc, but what makes this wine special is that it represents an alliance of the appellation's three great soil types: Terres Blanches (Kimmeridgian marl), Caillottes (Oxfordian limestone), and Silex (flint). Each terroir contributes something unique. Terres Blanches provides weight and structure, Caillottes brings freshness and vibrant fruit, while Silex adds minerality and a subtle savory character. When these three elements come together, the result is often greater than the sum of its parts—a wine that captures the complete expression of Sancerre rather than the personality of a single site. The result is a wonderfully balanced Sauvignon Blanc with bright aromas of grapefruit, lemon zest, white peach, and fresh herbs layered over a chalky, flinty backbone that keeps the wine focused and energetic. There is both precision and depth here, with each soil lending its own distinctive voice to the final blend. This is the style that has made Sancerre one of the world's great white wines. Whether paired with freshly shucked oysters, grilled sea bass, roast chicken, or a classic Loire goat cheese, this wine will shine at the table.

A hidden gem of a wine that doesn't get the recognition it deserves, the 2022 Château Couhins Blanc is 93% Sauvignon Blanc and 7% Sauvignon Gris brought up in 18% new barrels, with the balance in used oak and tank. Bright citrus, honeyed lime, mint, sappy flowers, and chalky minerality all define the aromatics, and it's medium to full-bodied and concentrated on the palate, with gorgeously clean acidity and a great finish. Savvy readers should snatch up this ripe, voluptuous, sensationally layered, textured, complex white. It's always hard to predict how these concentrated dry whites will age, yet this should benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age, and I wouldn't be surprised to see it still drinking beautifully at age 20.

Bid on this bottle of 1983 Haut-Brion Blanc, Graves. One of the top dry whites of the world, and one of longest lived, too! According to Robert Parker: "this is a wine one rarely ever sees because of the tiny production."

This is Ernest's first vintage of the Sauvignon Blanc from Hopkins River Ranch, an organically farmed site of old vines on the cooler east side of the Russian River. Winemaker Joseph Ryan notes that the old Clone 1 vines produce notoriously large clusters, which is why the harvest in 2024 didn't happen until late August, a delay that allowed the aromatics and flavor complexity to catch up with the vine's generous yield. In the cellar, Ryan creates a wine that feels balanced and really pleasant overall. With so much natural high acidity on the site, he lets the wine go through full malolactic fermentation and eight months on the lees in stainless steel, which soften the acid's sharper edges but maintain the site's high-toned energy while creating a cushion for those aromatics to land. There is a custard-like density on the palate driven by the concentrated oils of kumquat and tropical orange peel, with a fresh, herbal lift that slices right through the initial richness. (AQC)

Nicolas Millet is a small Sancerre grower focused on precise, site-driven Sauvignon Blanc from the limestone-rich slopes around Bué. Le Chêne Marchand is one of the village’s most celebrated vineyards, a well-exposed site of caillottes and limestone that gives the wines exceptional finesse, chalky tension, and aromatic lift. The 2023 bottling captures that terroir with bright citrus, floral detail, and the saline mineral precision that defines classic Bué Sancerre.

Honeyed flowers, ripe lemon, mint, and spicy wood notes all define the 2023 Sauvignon Blanc Beckstoffer Melrose Vineyard, a pure, layered, concentrated 100% Sauvignon Blanc brought up in 75% new oak. Medium to full-bodied and impeccably balanced on the palate, it will shine for at least 5-7 years, and my money is on longer.

The region of Menetou-Salon lies just southwest of Sancerre, and its vineyards share much of the same prized clay and limestone soils that have made its neighbor so famous. That continuity of terroir brings similar detail, tension, and depth — but often without the same level of attention. One of our core Direct Import Sancerre producers, Cherrier Freres, farms a small, separate property here known as Domaine Loriot. The soils at Loriot contain a higher proportion of terres blanches, the dense clay-limestone mix that tends to lend more weight and breadth to the wines. In the hands of the Cherrier family, that translates to a lush yet focused Sauvignon Blanc layered with Meyer lemon, white peach, and Red Delicious apple. Subtle notes of fresh grass and bay leaf nod clearly to the variety. Pure, expressive, and beautifully balanced — and at nearly half the price of many Sancerres — this is one of the strongest values in the category today.

We often refer to Touraine Sauvignon Blancs as “baby Sancerres.” There’s real overlap in the terroir, with soils rich in clay and limestone, and the moderating influence of the Loire and its tributaries keeping the wines fresh, lifted, and vibrant. The key distinction—beyond the far more accessible price point—is the fruit profile, which tends to show a bit more flesh and ripeness. Vieil Orme has been a longtime staff and client favorite, and the new 2025 release is an absolute delight. There’s a subtle mineral backbone, but the wine leans into generous notes of candied lemon peel, pineapple, and a touch of passion fruit. Bright, expressive, and downright crushable, this easily qualifies as one of the best values for Sauvignon Blanc on the shelf—regardless of category. Another triumph from one of our favorite Direct Import producers.

An assemblage of six different Columbia Valley vineyards, this Sauvignon Blanc shows verve and freshness. Aromatics of white florals, peach fuzz and a deep note of lemon pastry cream. On the palate, creamy citrus flavours and a nice rich texture carry across the palate brightened by a lazer acidity and mineral saline framing.

Fresh green notes of sweetgrass and lemongrass add complexity to the core of peach and citrus flavors, with Key lime and a touch of crunchy sea salt on the intense finish. Drink now.

Concentrated and fragrant, with lemongrass, lemon verbena and celery salt notes to complement the pineapple, mango and lemon curd flavors, backed by a touch of orange sherbet. Gains momentum on the long, expressive finish.

A vivid, tropical-fruit driven, kiwi-scented, peach-infused, dragon-fruit nuanced white that was aged 5 months sur lie, meaning on the yeast lees, bringing a harmonious baking spice note, finishing with candied apple and zesty lemon-lime bright acid tension. (JC)

The Crochets farm some of the finest vineyards around the village of Bué. La Chêne Marchand is a blend of limestone (the famed Caillottes) and clay, but the Crochets’ parcel includes a unique subset of softer chalk known as Griottes. This distinctive terroir yields wines of remarkable finesse and elegance. A touch of large-format oak aging (600L demi-muids) adds texture and depth, resulting in one of the most refined yet sumptuous Sancerres on our shelves. Expect notes of peach, lemon rind, and a pristine, chalky minerality on the nose. Always among the most sought-after wines from Crochet, it stands shoulder to shoulder with top producers like Pinard and Jolivet—yet remains a far greater value.

Aromas of guava, orange creamsicle and wild herbs. Luscious and mouthfilling with juicy acidity and flavors of lemon peel and mango. Really distinctive with a medium- to full-bodied style. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Château Couhins was recognized for its white wine in the 1959 Graves classification. Its 2024 Blanc comes from Pessac-Léognan, the appellation established in 1987 in the northern Graves. Sauvignon Blanc connects this wine to one of the principal grape varieties of Bordeaux’s dry whites.

Brand new! In keeping with its past vintages, this Massican Sauvignon Blanc retains its unique character of crispy clean refreshment! So clean with pink grapefruit, yellow citrus and white exotic fruits. Just enough minerals and "bite" to make it a classic.

I had the chance to visit Pauline Pabiot a few years ago at her property in Tracy-sur-Loire, one of the villages in the Pouilly-Fumé appellation. I'd already tasted the wines beforehand, so I pretty much knew we'd end up working together — but it was her charm and the direction she was taking the winery that really sealed the deal. Young and determined, she took over the estate from her grandfather, Roger Pabiot. She's now the fifth generation running the place, and she's converted it to organic farming, even keeping the old Chasselas vines around to make a tiny, very limited batch of Pouilly-sur-Loire. We wandered through her vines together, exploring the appellation. Back at the winery, she pulled out all these fossils that had turned up in the vineyards over the years — pretty cool stuff. The soils around Pouilly-Fumé are known for lots of silex (flint), but the "Coteau" is actually planted over sandy-clay and clay-limestone, which gives those wines a brighter, more lifted freshness. One of my tasting notes for the 2024 just said, "YUM!" And honestly, that about sums it up. It's packed with lemon verbena, fresh nectarine, and honeydew melon, with a light chalky minerality that balances the fruit and that signature refreshing acidity. It's just a really pleasing wine — full of all the charm I've come to expect from Pauline.

Cakebread Cellars was founded in Rutherford in 1973 by Jack and Dolores Cakebread, establishing the Napa Valley winery on a former ranch. This 2024 Sauvignon Blanc carries that California legacy into a North Coast bottling centered on one of the world’s classic white grape varieties.

Muddled yellow apple, ripe Anjou pear and white nectarine aromas mingle with white blossom and lemon peel on the nose. Freshly-sliced orchard fruit washes across wet stone that follows an estuary of citrus on the finish. Pair with fried calamari, mango-salsa tacos and roasted chicken. *Editors' Choice* (RS)

Located in the village of Bue, one of the pinnacle producing regions in the Sancerre appellation, the Crochet family is well represented. Dominique and Janine Crochet are the fifth generation in viticulture along their family tree.

Nicolas Millet “Les Garennes” Sancerre is produced by Domaine Nicolas Millet, a family estate based in the village of Bué, one of the most respected communes in the Sancerre appellation. The wine is sourced from the Les Garennes vineyard site, where Sauvignon Blanc is grown on the limestone-rich caillottes soils that are characteristic of the region. The Millet family has farmed vineyards in Sancerre for multiple generations, focusing on estate-grown Sauvignon Blanc that reflects the distinct terroirs of the Sancerre appellation.

Offering terrific fruit purity and power, the wine displays aromas of feijoa, kiwifruit, kaffir lime, and fresh herbs on the nose. The wonderfully weighted palate delivers excellent vibrancy and juicy fruit intensity, leading to a delectable, flavoursome finish.

The 2025 Sauvignon Blanc leads with a soft nose of musk sticks and brine, green apple skins, wet linen and green olive tapenade. In the mouth, the wine is tightly coiled and yet textured by pithy phenolics. The length of the flavor is long, as we have come to expect from Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc. This is a superb wine in any vintage. (EL)

Bid on this 6-bottle lot of 2011 Peter Michael "L'Apres Midi" Knights Valley Sauvignon Blanc (93VN, 92RP, 92ST, 91WS). Vinous: "One of my long-time favorites in this range, the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc L'Apres-Midi is gorgeous in this vintage. Citrus lychee, jasmine, melon, fig, smoke, and pear notes all flesh out in the glass. The 2011 is impeccably layered and balanced from start to finish. Hints of lemon oil and white flowers add brightness on the crisp, bracing finish. The blocked malo style works particularly well here. (AG)" (07/2013) Vinous: "One of my long-time favorites in this range, the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc L'Apres-Midi is gorgeous in this vintage. Citrus lychee, jasmine, melon, fig, smoke, and pear notes all flesh out in the glass. The 2011 is impeccably layered and balanced from start to finish. Hints of lemon oil and white flowers add brightness on the crisp, bracing finish. The blocked malo style works particularly well here. (AG)" (07/2013)

Bid on this 2-bottle tasting lot; including 1-bottle of 1983 Laville Haut Brion Blanc, Graves and 1-bottle of 1990 Fieuzal Blanc, Pessac-Leognan. Of the 1990 Fieuzal Blanc, Pessac-Leognan, 91 points from the Wine Spectator… 'Ripe, round, complex and generous, offering a mouthwatering blend of grapefruit and vanilla flavors and spicy, leesy overtones that persist on the finish. A harmonious, flavorful wine that should keep developing through 1996 to '98. (Sep-93)'

There's a lovely perfume and floral edge here with aromas of jasmine, apple blossom, candied lime, gooseberry, honeysuckle and green melon. The palate is medium-bodied with generosity cut through by vibrant acidity and tension underneath the fruit and minerals. Drink now.

Classically styled and expressed, the gorgeously aromatic bouquet shows green rockmelon, kiwifruit, fresh fig and lemon zest aromas, leading to a wonderfully flavoursome palate that's juicy and lively. Fresh and super tasty.

From a lower section of the Ink Grade Estate, below 425 metres, this vineyard sits just outside the Howell Mountain AVA, making it part of the Napa Valley AVA. Intentionally made in a more reductive style, it is fermented partly in barrel and concrete, then racked to stainless steel for six months before completing full malolactic fermentation. This wine showcases a generosity of fruit, leaning towards the stone fruit spectrum, with layers of spicy ginger and cool wet slate or flinty mineral notes. The palate is rich and textured, with warming spice nuances of ginger and turmeric, leading to a leesy, lingering finish. Very elegant and exceptionally food-friendly.

Chateau de Sancerre 2025 releases a gorgeous aroma of fruits (quince, lycee, passion fruit)... The acidity is well-balanced and the mineral sensation lasts an eternity. This is the type of Sancerre that one can drink effortlessly while contemplating the sunset or the autumn leaves falling. Cheers! (ME)

Domaine Begude was purchased in 2003 by British couple James and Catherine Kinglake. The Kinglakes converted the vineyard to organic production, using only natural fertilizers and no irrigation. Today their wines are among our best direct imports with an array including Chardonnay, Viognier, Pinot Noir and even Grüner Veltliner. The wines are made by Laurent Girault, a native of Charente who has made wine all over France as well as New Zealand’s Central Otago region. Laurent’s winemaking style is clean, honest and done with little intervention. The Sauvignon Blanc is vinified in stainless steel to preserve a fresh, bright profile. Snappy and vibrant, this little wine shows notes of gooseberry, lemongrass and citrus zest on the palate, and is a great match to vegetable dishes. One of our favorite pairings for the wine is a fresh herbed goat cheese salad.

A seductive, minerally, textural and poised Sancerre. On the nose it has notes of spiced apples, dried pears, warm herbs, baking spices and some pebbles. Medium-bodied with bright acidity on the palate. Stony and vertical, yet it has density and a juicy and succulent finish, with a touch of flint on the aftertaste. From organically grown grapes. (KD)

Although labeled Vin de France, "Blanc, Etc." sits within Dagueneau's Loire Sauvignon Blanc program centered around Saint-Andelain. The team farms biodynamically and keeps yields extremely low, often with one worker per hectare, which is almost unheard of in the Loire. Louis-Benjamin Dagueneau has continued the domaine's exacting work in the vines and cellar, keeping the focus on small-production Sauvignon Blanc rather than broad regional volume. The "Blanc, Etc." comes from the younger vines across multiple parcels across a mix of Kimmeridgian Marl and clay-limestone. All grapes are farmed biodynamically at much lower yields than other surrounding producers. This is the quintessential Fume, not Fume. Intense citrus peel and green fruit notes, this has long mineral tones and a lightly smoky edge. Always great in its youth with a brief decanting, it is also worthy of waiting a few years for maximum enjoyment.

Very elegant, superfloral and perfumed, with some flinty reduction, offering acacia blossoms, hay, fleshy lemons and a touch of elderberries. Medium-bodied with firm acidity giving structure and length. Attractive bitter-lemon note in the finish. Mineral and detailed with real focus. From organically grown grapes. (CN)

Based in Rutherford, family-owned Honig has built its wine program around Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2024 Napa–Lake County Sauvignon Blanc connects the winery’s Napa Valley roots with neighboring Lake County to the north, showcasing one of the producer’s two signature grape varieties.

Intensely aromatic, the inviting bouquet shows green rockmelon, kiwifruit, kaffir lime, and jasmine aromas, leading to a delectably expressed palate offering bright fruit flavours with zesty acidity, finishing long and super-tasty.

The 2023 Dollarhide Estate Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc is delightful, creamy, complex and lively.

The 2025 Sauvignon Blanc Estate reveals silver leaf, white pepper, and white pineapple tones and is morphing into something special. Sourced from old vines selected by taste by Tom Rochioli, it balances tropical hints with focus and precision. Not overtly tropical, it instead leans into intensity, structure, and tension that should continue to develop beautifully over the next decade. Drink over the coming 10 years.

Touraine takes its name from the historic province surrounding Tours in France’s Loire Valley. Sauvignon Blanc is the principal grape for the appellation’s white wines, and Jean-François Mérieau’s 2023 “Arpents des Vaudons” belongs to that regional tradition: a Sauvignon Blanc bearing the Touraine Blanc appellation.