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Gamble Family Vineyards 2016 Sauvignon Blanc Gamble Vineyard Yountville $25

Sauvignon Blanc can be love it or leave it. I appreciate all of its styles, and I sip them all at different times.

The Gamble Vineyard 2016 version is absolutely singular. This is due in good part to its 40% of the Sauvignon Blanc Musqué Clone, which gives this wine a tropical, exotic and musky (hence its name) tone rather than the zestier “cat’s pee on a gooseberry bush” style. Moreover, it’s more generously lush on the palate yet still nicely reined – in at only 13.1% abv – than many other Napa Valley Sauvignon Blancs hailing from the valley floor. This despite the fact the Gamble Sauvignon Blanc hails from cooler Yountville, towards Napa’s southern end.

Some of the additional mystique of this wine is also attributable to its native yeast fermentation, which imbues it with a broader range of aromas and a deeper palate. It’s rare I get mango, much less the delightful, delicate, Indian Alphonso mango, on a wine. I get it here! All this despite that it is 100% pure Sauvignon Blanc!

This beauty also sees a wee bit of French and Hungarian oak aging that further develops its complexity through the oak’s honeyed and spicy notes. (I am a big fan of Kadar oak, THE Hungarian barrel star, on white wine, and this one has it.)

In sum, DO NOT expect this wine to taste like your typical Sauvignon Blanc at this especially laid-back price point for Napa. Be prepared that its gingery nose, masses of yellow plums and creamy mouthfeel may well leave you with a new impression of Sauvignon Blanc!