White Wine For Fall

Summer has come and gone.  Labor Day capped another vacation period with terrible traffic and a "last chance" attitude toward miniature golf and Bermuda shorts.  It's the time of year when people turn their attention away from the lighter, whiter wines that refresh and replenish, and look forward to a winter of hearty reds to warm the insides and pair with meaty, soul-filling dishes.

For me, though, it's always white wine weather - I drink mine at room temperature, the better to savor the aromas and flavors which are sometimes softened by a chill.  I also like mine with more than salad and seafood, as the higher acidity levels found in many whites makes for a great match with pork and chicken.  And turkey.  It's getting to be the time to think about turkey.

Cornerstone Cellars' winemakers Charles Thomas and Kari Auringer can be proud of the Sauvignon Blanc they helped create.  Thomas has a 30 year track record in the Napa Valley, while Auringer is in her second go-round.  The 2016 Cornerstone Cellars Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc is crisp and delicious, floral and fruity, as if New Zealand is a thousand miles away.  Well, actually more like seven thousand.

Cornerstone says the wine has a little bit of the Musque clone, "which adds complexity and a hint of sweet fruit."  It was fermented in stainless steel tanks and neutral oak barrels, giving it more heft than a run-of-the mill SauvBlanc.  Alcohol hits 14.1% abv and it sells for $30.

This gold-green wine smells slightly of herbal notes, but the nose carries loads of peaches, apples and lemons.  The palate shows the same fruit flavors, scant herbs and a very nice acidity.  Citrus lingers on the finish and leaves a clean memory.

Follow Randy Fuller on Twitter