The wines of Dourthe, Bordeaux

Dourthe: part 2, blending No. 1 Sauvignon Blanc
The Bordeaux negociant and property owner aiming to change the fortunes of affordable wines from Bordeaux

No1 Sauvignon Blanc a rare thing: an affordable Bordeaux brand that has a strong potential. First of all, it is Sauvignon, which is really trendy at the moment. Second, Bordeaux has a lot of it, and seems to be a good place to grow this grape. ‘We have worked for 20 years on Sauvignon here,’ says Dourthe CEO Patrick Jestin, ‘and we are 100% sure of being able to select the best Sauvignon in the region possible.’

Patrick Jestin pouring a sample

We looked at a range of samples of Sauvignon with Patrick Jestin and winemakers Thomas Drouineau and Christophe Ollivier. ‘We need the best Sauvignons,’ says Jestin. ‘The ones with volume and character. We need a significant volume (500 000 litres, which is 60 000 cases).’ The team had already tasted 200 samples over the previous 15 days, and this was a final selection. Around one-quarter of the wines would go to No1. ‘At this level, price is more or less the same,’ explained Ollivier. He explained that they were looking for a pure expression of Sauvignon with strong character. ‘We don’t want it to be too ripe, lacking freshness. Nor do we want it to be too green, lacking body, with simple aromas.’

Altogether Bordeaux has 200 000 hectolitres of Sauvignon, and the team at Dourthe have tasted two-thirds of this to make their selection. On the table in front of us we had wines representing a tenth of the whole region – 20 000 hectolitres. Most of these wines come from Entre Deux Mers and Blaye. Blaye is reckoned to be one of the best places in Bordeaux for Sauvignon.

The benchmarking: after the bottles were revealed

Then it was time for some benchmarking, with a blind tasting of commercial Sauvignons. These are the results

Score order	Wine	Note	Score/20
1	Viña Leyda Garuma Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Leyda, Chile	Lively, aromatic and vibrant. A grassy New Zealand style with grapefruit freshness.	17.5
2	La Grille Classique 2008 VdP Loire	Lovely restrained minerally, grassy nose. Palate is refined and taut with a subtle herby edge.	16.5
3=	Dourthe No 1 2008 Bordeaux	Taut, mineralic nose. The palate is tight and herby with grapefruit notes. Nice Bordeaux style.	16
3=	Calvet Reserve 2008 Bordeaux	Taut herbal, minerally nose. The palate is fresh and focused. Nice balance.	16
5=	Bonterra Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Mendocino, California	Pungent green herbal nose with some mineral and grapefruit. Rich fruity palate with some tropical fruit notes. New world style.	15.5
5=	Warwick Estate Professor Black 2008 Stellenbosch, South Africa	Minerally, reductive, herby nose. Richly fruited palate with nice balance and weight.	15.5
5=	Robert Mondavi Fumé Blanc 2008 California	Grassy grapefruit nose showing generous fruit and some herby notes. Grassy palate with some greenness.	15.5
5=	Nepenthe Sauvignon Blanc 2009 Adelaide Hills	Fresh grapefruit nose is precise and lively with nice fruit. Herby palate shows some complexity.	15.5
9=	Jacob’s Creek Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Australia	Fresh grapefruit and herb nose. Bright, crisp fruity palate. It’s light and fruity and perhaps a bit neutral?	15
9=	Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Marlborough, New Zealand	Bold, aromatic methoxypyrazine nose. Lively, rich and quite exotic. Fresh and grassy.	15
9=	Jacob’s Creek Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Australia	Intense green herbal, mineral, fruity nose. The palate is lively and full with sweet fruit and some mineral notes. Ripe style.	15
9=	Montana Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Marlborough, New Zealand	Distinctive green herbal nose is fresh and vibrant. The palate is lively with fresh grassy notes.	15
13=	Errazuriz Tapihue Block 2008 Chile	Grapey, herby, mineral nose. The palate is light and fruity with some herb notes. Commercial new world style.	14.5
13=	Porcupine Ridge Sauvignon Blanc 2009 South Africa	Bright limey nose. Bold, dense fresh palate with nice weight of fruit.	14.5
15=	Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Marlborough, New Zealand	Slightly confected. Sweet, fresh herby fruit with some green notes.	14
15=	Dourthe Grande Cuvee 2008 Bordeaux	Minerally, reduced nose. Herbal, mineral palate is fresh and savoury. Quite light.	14
15=	Villa Maria Private Bin Sauvignon Blanc 2009 Marlborough, New Zealand	Bold, green and herby with some richness of fruit.	14
18=	Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2009 Marlborough, New Zealand	Green, herbal nose. Lively palate with some unripe methoxypyrazine notes and fruit sweetness.	13
18=	Oxford Landing Sauvignon Blanc 2009 South Australia	Fresh grapefruit and lime nose with some herbiness. Slightly weird herbal palate, finishing savoury.	13
18=	Montes Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2009 Chile	Smoky, minerally edge to the nose. Bright fruity palate. Commercial style.	13
21=	Springfield Life from Stone Sauvignon Blanc 2008 South Africa	Nice grapefruit and gooseberry nose, but the bold palate shows overpowering green methoxypyrazine notes.	11
21=	Ch de Presle Sauvignon 2008 Touraine, France	Very rich, sweet nose with exotic fruit. Tropical and rich. The palate has an unpleasant appley edge to it.	11
21=	Waitrose Sancerre La Franchotte 2008 France	Sweet, slightly sickly nose. Herbal. Sickly green pea on the palate.	11
24	Firefinch Sauvignon Blanc 2009 South Africa	Very distinctive chalky, methoxypyrazine nose. Concentrated green herbal palate. Almost overpoweringly green.	10

After this, we had a small blind tasting over lunch.

1. Mineral grassy nose with some green herbal characters. Nice minerality, too. The palate is mineral and fruity with some restraint. Citrus dominates. Quite sophisticated. 87/100 (this was Dourthe No 1 Sauvignon Blanc 2008)

2. Very full aromatic nose with grapefruit and hints of toast/vanilla. The palate has lovel bright, focused lemony fruit with grapefruit and herb notes. Lovely richness and precision. 89/100 (this was Dourthe Terroirs d'Exception Croix des Bosquets 2008 Graves)

3. Taut and mineral, and quite complex on the nose. Bold, herby, grapefruit flavours. Strongly savoury mineral streak. Lovely. 91/100 (this was Ch Rahoul 2007 Graves)

4. Intense and fresh with grapefruit and lemon character. Taut, intense, mineral palate with some richer melon fruit notes alongside the grapefruit characters. 90/100 (this was Ch La Garde Blanc 2007, which is 50% Sauvignon Gris)

DOURTHE

1 Introduction
2 Sauvignon Blanc
3 Château La Garde, and dinner with Matthieu Chadronnier
4 Château Pey La Tour
5 Château Belgrave, and blending Essence
6 Château Le Boscq