Our Growers:

Didier Dagueneau is what the French call an original. In Dagueneau's case, what is original about him is an intense competitiveness-- he was the 1996 Husky racing champion of Europe. He uses new oak, but not in order to apply a cosmetic veneer to a "prestige cuvee". He uses new oak because he wants the aromatic development a wine gets from "breathing" through the wood as it ages.

Dagueneau is the zenith of wine makers, according to some. He is not only a genius at winemaking, but he also listens to his terroir: nothing escapes him. Dagueneau's aim has been to show that Sauvignon blanc is one of the truly great white grape varieties, capable of producing wines that can match Chardonnay or Riesling for sheer quality and interest. He is fortunate enough to have a terroir as great as his ambition. He "only" had to add the methods, in the vineyard and in the cellar, that would allow him to realize the potential of that terroir. The impact of his bold wines is particularly dramatic because his vines are on the silex-rich slopes of St-Andelain where Dagueneau has some of the choicest vineyard sites in this commune whose fame is rooted

in its earth-- 95% clay-siliceous soil. It produces firm, very well-structured wines of great length and class whose aromas typify most the mineral, flinty, "smoky" character from which the Appellation, "Smoky Pouilly," probably derives its name.

The scrupulously gentle handling of the harvest continues in the cellars. There is no pumping during the vinification process. The wine ages on the fine lees, unfined but lightly filtered, before bottling. The wine never undergoes the malolactic fermentation. The aim is to conserve the wine's youthful fruit and not to impede the purest possible expression of terroir. The oak is beautifully balanced with the grape flavors and the mineral notes from the soil.

Buisson Rénard: This wine is made from a small, single lieu-dit whose quality is so unusual that Dagueneau bottles it separately. At mid-slope on the Saint-Andelain butte, the soil is entirely argile à silex, and the vines are twenty years old. The slope faces west, with afternoon-to-evening sun. The wine is vinified in barrel and then aged in vat. The wine is stronger, deeper and more accessible without the evidence of wood-aging that marks the Pur Sang and the Silex when they are young. Buisson Rénard is a complete, seamless and subtle wine that captivates with its purity and length of expression, not with flashiness. The Wine Spectator (June 15, 2007) gives the Buisson Renard 2004 95 points: “Gorgeous, with acacia and honeysuckle flower aromas followed by green almond, grapefruit, lime and straw notes.”

Pur Sang ["pur sang" means "thoroughbred"]: This is a truly 'outsized' Sauvignon from an assemblage of different parcels of 30 year-old vines, entirely from the argile à silex soil of the butte. It is vinified and aged in new oak 'cigar-shaped' barrels built to Dagueneau's specifications. The age of the vines makes the difference in quality and size and shows what a difference deep roots can make if the yields are kept low. The Wine Spectator (June 15, 2007) says of the Pur Sang, which it gives 95 points: "Subtle but alluring aromas of lemon curd and acacia flower belie the power in this white. Long, crackling finish.""

Silex: An assemblage of different parcels of 50 year-old vines, entirely from the butte. It is vinified and aged in new oak Bordeaux barrels. The Wine Spectator (June 15, 2007) gives this wine 96 points: "Cuts like a knife, with live-wire Key lime, grapefruit, chalk and sea salt notes. Rich and powerful." Blanc Fumé de Pouilly: is the newest wine in the Dagueneau line, a replacement for the former En Chailloux. It is barrel-fermented and aged half in stainless steel and half in large, neutral barrels. It includes some fruit from Didier's Pur Sang, Buisson Renard and Silex cuvées. The Wine Spectator (June 15, 2007) gives the 2004 vintage of this wine 94 points: “Uncommonly rich, with a tightly wound core of lemon zest, white flowers, chalk and freshly baled hay.”