Summer Wine: Dry Creek Vineyard Fumé Blanc

Several new white wine releases by Dry Creek Vineyards were shared with me recently, and they are ideal for springtime and summer consumption.  Whites are great all year long, if you ask me, but the summer months allow for a crisp white wine to show its refreshing qualities best.   We have already covered the the Dry Creek Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc and Dry Chenin Blanc.  Today, their Fumé Blanc, kindly provided as a sample for review.

Fumé Blanc is the wine that put Dry Creek Vineyard on the map.  Founder David Stare was the first to plant Sauvignon Blanc in Dry Creek Valley, and he did so after being wowed by the classic styles of the grape produced in Sancerre, Pouilly and Vouvray.

Sauvignon Blanc, at its best, offers freshness in a way no other grape does.  Its racy, wild character is not bound by "fruity" or limited by "pretty."  Sauvignon Blanc is the first day of spring, the hottest day of summer, the last warm day of fall.

Dry Creek Vineyard's first Fumé Blanc release came in 1972, and the winery still - despite all its other successes - presents it as their flagship wine.  The winemaking team of Tim Bell and Nova Perrill adhere to tradition - Loire Valley inspiration is apparent in the wine’s aromas, flavors and textures.  !00% Sauvignon Blanc, the wine was fermented in stainless steel tanks, reaching  13.5% abv.  It retails for $14 and is bottled under a screw cap.

2013 offered near perfect growing conditions, and is one of the driest vintages on record.  A mild winter and a moderate summer stretched the season and allowed for some great acidity providing the backbone of the finished product.  The winery recommends you try this wine with oysters.

The pale wine has a fragrance to rival spring itself.  Grassy and daring, it smells of mango, pineapple and a fresh cut lawn.  It smells like spring; it smells like summer.  The palate is just as amazing, with apples, tropical fruit


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Ferrari - Carano Fume Blanc

Mother’s Day found us in Las Vegas, taking Denise’s mother, Verna, to an early dinner at Spiedini Italian Ristorante.  It’s a place we have enjoyed for years in the Rampart Casino in Summerlin, out west of the strip where things are a little less crazy.

Gustav Mauler’s eatery has never disappointed me, even when it’s simple.  Grilled calamari and capellini pomodoro tasted great on this day.  I had the Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc.

A 100% varietal wine, the Sauvignon Blanc grapes were taken from the various Ferrari-Carano Sonoma County vineyards.   The wine is fermented about two-thirds in stainless steel, one-third in neutral French oak.  The wine in the barrels is aged sur lie, or with the spent yeast cells still in the wine.  This gives more weight to the finished wine and creates a fuller mouthfeel.

A greenish tint marks this white wine in the glass, and the nose is steely and nervy.   Citrus aromas dominate, with a hint of smoke wafting over the transom.   The palate is mineral-laden and also citrusy.  The flavor of lemon peel carries through the sip and into the finish.

I don’t know if there was a wine on the Spiedini list which would have gone better with my grilled calamari or my mother-in-law’s buttery clams.   Later, in the elevator, a fellow guest told me, “If it makes the mother-in-law happy, it’s worth whatever it costs!”



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