A review of Ferrari-Carano 2007 Fume Blanc

This is probably my favorite American sauvignon blanc. It's certainly the one I serve most often in my home. Even though I like the 2005 and 2006 a little better than the 2007, this is still a consistently good wine from vintage to vintage.

The 2007 Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc is 100% sauvignon blanc, made from a blend of vineyard lots from various appellations of Sonoma County: Dry Creek, Alexander Valley and Russian River Valley. The taste of this wine is refined and elegant, with bright notes of fruit, good balance (between fruit and alcohol), and enough acidity to balance out the fruit. There's also just a touch of the grassy note that is often characteristic of California sauvignon blancs. When you smell the wine you'll detect aromas of grapefruit, citrus and ripe honeydew melon.

Ferrari-Carano calls their sauvignon blanc "Fume Blanc" because it spends some time in oak. Fume is French for "smoke," and the idea is that the time spent in oak imparts a smoky quality to the wine, as well as adding complexity and depth to the finished product. For those of you who care about such things, the wine was aged partially in stainless steel and older French Oak. Of course, the older the oak is the less oak taste it imparts. This is not a wine where you'd want a heavy influence of oak and the winemaker achieved a good balance.

The 2007 Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc pairs well with just about any seafood dish you can imagine. I've had it with lobster, breaded crab with herbs, broiled fish, and shrimp sautéed in olive oil with Creole seasoning and lemon. You could also serve it with roast chicken, pork chops or pork medallions, and veal. This is an incredibly versatile wine. I wouldn't hesitate to pair it with spicy Asian cuisine (especially Thai, Vietnamese, and Burmese), Mexican food, and Cajun dishes. From vintage to vintage, I serve the Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc in my home and it is consistently a hit with those who try it.

If you're tired of chardonnay, give this wine a try the next time you need a good white wine. You probably won't find a better American white wine for under $15.00.

One other thing that I love about this wine is that it comes with a twist-off cap. I'm really tired of getting bottles of corked wine (ie wine that has TCA contamination from bad cork) and that never happens with twist off caps.

I highly recommend this wine.

FYI: Wilfred Wong of Bevmo.com rated this wine 90 points.

This wine retails for around $15.00.