1 | Wine | Sauvignon Blanc, 86 or higher | Page 3

"Sweet ginger spice on the nose. Ripe apple and spice flavors show good intensity and cut but are dulled by a faintly resiny character, no doubt from oak. Finishes with a touch of dryness. I wanted a bit more fruit." -Stephen Tanzer

"The lush, ripe pit fruit; luscious citrus; and wafting floral perfume that characterized “the rest” of the material that will become this year’s Tradition cuvee here display additional intensity, accompanied by piquant nut oils, oyster liquor, and shrimp shell reduction, making for a deep, saliva-liberating savor. For all of its richness, this delivers ample refreshment, while evincing a remarkable sense of buoyancy. Look to have a wonderful time with this beauty over the next 3-4 years."

"It reveals lots of honeyed citrus, melon and fig-like fruit. Delicate yet intense with loads of fruit, medium body and a long finish, it should be drunk over the next year."-Robert Parker

"Bright and vibrant, juicy with pear and floral flavors. Lingering finish."

"offers subtly fusil, smoky, and chalky notes as well as mint and basil over a base of ripely aromatic and eventually succulent kiwi and grapefruit."

"Evinces the pear and mint that have always been signatures for this bottling. A lush, luscious, fruit-forward and satisfyingly lees-enriched, silken palate is also typical, but here there is more vivacity and cut than in the corresponding Pierrier cuvee, with pear skin and pip helping serve for finishing invigoration."

"A nice crackling core of thyme, flint and chive races along, with a mouthwatering finish full of fleur de sel. Bracing and invigorating."

"Medium straw-yellow. Leesy aromas and flavors of orange zest, sexy oak spices and vanilla. Offers excellent body and richness but comes across as a bit aggressive on the back end, with a slightly fiery quality blurring the finish. Superb material here but not quite the precision or grip for outstanding."

"Vividly juicy, with a core of grapefruit and green papaya, revealing nuances of peach, lime and herb. Aromatic and juicy on the finish."

"There is as usual nothing mundane about the “basic” Dagueneau cuvee, the estate’s 2009 Blanc Fume de Pouilly. This is the sole cuvee at its address to blend across two soil types – Marne chalk and silex – as well as across several far-flung parcels, some of which were hailed on this year, and the parts had not yet been assembled for this 2009 when I tasted in June, so I offer only a composite impression. Smoky red currant, lime, and nettle display an aromatic pungency that coincides with a bright, energetic, silken-textured, very pure palate impression. White peach and wafting florality are conveyed by the (in this vintage, one-third) Marne chalk portion. The suffusion of chalk here is as usual impressive without in any way blocking the mouth-watering flow of fruit, and the same can be said as far as the influence of wood is concerned. This finishes with vibratory intensity and ringing clarity, as though it had been grown in a vintage from which nobody else in the region got to make wine." 91-92+ pts.