August 2002 Over the last twelve months, Wine & Spirits tasted 157 Sauvignon Blanc. The following wines received the strongest praise from our critics. A list of all Sauvignon Blanc tasted, with the recommended wines highlighted, is included with subscription copies.

Sauvignon Blanc
94 I J. Rochioli $22 2001 Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc Rochioli's forty-year-old vines produce concentrated fruit, and Tom Rochioli preserves that fruit with a beautiful, fresh clarity. This isn't built up with oak, nor it is full and weighty. Instead, it manages to be a mouthwatering wine of substance, powerful and gripping yet clean and elusive as spring water, with a white berry and gooseberry crispness that lasts. Enjoy it with soft-shell crab, or save a bottle for Dungeness season. (3,053 cases) J. Rochioli Vineyards, Healdsburg, CA
93 I Liparita $18 2000 Oakville Sauvignon Blanc Richness is all in this super-ripe sauvignon, immediately apparent in the initial aromas of tangerine peel, fennel and orange marmalade. Grown at the Crossroads Vineyard in Oakville, this offers an intriguing terroir expression, both in its fruit character and the underlying earthiness that adds to the fruit's distinction. Chill this slightly for roasted fennel under fresh brook trout. (1,400 cases) Liparita Cellars, Oakville, CA
93 I Joseph Phelps $20 2001 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc Had the Shakers made it west to California, they might have planted sauvignon to make a wine like this: fresh, floral, with simple lines to clarify the essential elegance of the grape. It feels well sited on the palate, with a rich rise from the middle that keeps freshening, lifting into bright flavors. And it feels completely natural, unadorned. Open a bottle with any fruits de mer. Joseph Phelps Vineyards, St. Helena, CA
92 I Araujo $30 2000 Napa Valley Eisele Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc Vinous and firm, this combines green-grape freshness and a richer barrel tone. It all snaps to a chalk line of white and green tension, a grape-skin bitterness adding texture to that narrow structure, and should expand as it develops over the next two years. Fran�oise Peschon makes this wine from estate vines that have been farmed biodynamically since 1997. It's predominantly the musque clone of sauvignon, with a dash of viognier. Araujo Estate Wines, Calistoga, CA
92 I Chateau Potelle $15 2000 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc Graves in style, this wine has enough complexity and depth to its fruit to live up to the oak fermentation. Together, the fruit and oak combine in a smokiness, a green-olive earthiness, a savory and satisfying flavor that's both generous and lasting. Elegant now, this should improve over the coming year. Chateau Potelle, Napa, CA
92 I Honig $20 2000 Napa Valley Rutherford Reserve Sauvignon Blanc You might play off the floral, jasmine tea scents of this sauvignon, matching its rich, white-peach flavors to a crab soup or shellfish stew. Or you could pick up on the earthier elements with p�t�. Even with its lovely plumpness of texture and lasting buzz, there's a rasp to this sauvignon (is it white Rutherford dust?), an earthiness that will grow more intriguing with time. (1,500 cases) Honig Vineyard & Winery, Rutherford, CA
92 I St. Supery $16 2001 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc Clean yet substantial, this sauvignon stings with the scent of white flowers, the fresh and delicate aroma of narcissus. Then it fills out, the firm green fruit balanced and lasting. The texture is full enough for a beefy pho or parslied pig's trotters. St. Supery Vineyards & Winery, Rutherford, CA
92 I Stag's Leap Wine Cellars $24 2000 Napa Valley Rancho Chimiles Sauvignon Blanc A fragrant, creamy fullness develops out of this wine's youthful fruit � elements of quince and grapefruit along with lime. It's fresh and refined, with enough backbone and flesh to match veal or to enrich a crab. Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, Napa, CA
92 I Blockheadia Ringnosii $17 2000 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc Delicate and fragrant scents of cut grass brighten the white-peach fruitiness of this sauvignon. It's a sharp blade to cut through white salmon sashimi or giant clam. The fresh, clean severity of the acidity is its best asset, cleansing the palate for the next bite. Lorenza Lake Winery, Oakville, CA
91 I Robert Mondavi $35 1999 Napa Valley To-Kalon Vineyard Reserve Fume Blanc Completely different from its peers, this is severe in its concentration, woody at first with a white-pepper spice, then unctuous with a white grape flavor. Give it air, and the wine responds in smoke and shadows, lingering with complexity. Decant it now for crab, or cellar a stash to let it evolve. Robert Mondavi Winery, Oakville, CA