Wine Wednesday

San Elias Sauvignon Blanc 2014

“This wine rains kisses in your mouth.” –Insatiable By Gael Greene

The first Wednesday of every month is Wine Wednesday! Spectacular wines under $10.00. Yep. Under $10.00. Sometimes wine is less expensive where I am, but most of the time it’s more expensive. Hopefully that means that I will pick wines that are well below the $10.00 limit for most of you.

I will post wines that I particularly like. I am no specialist by any means, but I do love wine. I know the basics of the different varietals, what regions generally produce, how wines are made, but this space is all about preference. We all like what we like, and you might like what I like too. I will post food pairings and why those pairings are suitable for the specific wine.

San Elias Sauvignon Blanc 2014

Price: $5.99

Variety: Sauvignon Blanc

Previous Awards or Ratings: N/A

This wine is a dry white with acidity. In other words, a perfect white table wine. Sauvignon Blanc is generally a wine with green apple, gooseberry, and green (often described as fresh-cut grass) notes. It can also have some notes that are generally seen as unpleasant like flint or even cat pee. This particular white comes from the Central Valley in Chile, so there are some characteristics common to this Sauvignon Blanc. First of all, Sauvignon Blanc’s from South America are generally winners when they’re from Chile. So we’ve got that going for us! Secondly, the Sauvignon Blanc wines from Chile tend to be more citrus-y and less green than the Sauvignon Blanc wines from other popular regions like New Zealand. They also tend to have less unpleasant characteristics like the cat pee smell. In other words, Chilean Sauvignon Blanc is much simpler in its flavor profile. If you prefer more complex Sauvignon Blanc’s, I suggest you head for the New Zealand aisle.

I have paired the San Elias Sauvignon Blanc with a roasted potato salad. The nutty flavor from roasting the potatoes (Maillard Browning!) and the olive oil creates a rich profile. The wine acidity works well with this richness and cuts through it. The mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, and onions complement the citrus notes in the wine while not contributing a whole lot to the acidity of the meal.

Serve chilled and hope that spring is here to stay!