Going completely blanc

Acid, Nuts and Minerals, Oh My!

By Warren Rojas

Kelly Magyarics has a thing for bold whites.

2008 Spy Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (Courtesy of Spy Valley)

“Some may criticize New Zealand sauvignon blanc for acting like a one-trick pony—all lean and mean and lacking the complexity that the grape shows in other regions like the Loire and Bordeaux—but other acid junkies (myself included) crave its zesty, bright acidity and freshness,” she argues.

She got her latest fix from the 2008 Spy Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc ($12), a whip-smart refresher with “intense gooseberry and passion fruit” and “wet stone-like minerality.”

While putting away one of PassionFish’s fried oyster po’boy, Jake Parrott found himself reaching for the 2008 Chateau les Arromans Entre-Deux-Mers ($14)—a stand-up sipper packed “with loads of Granny Smith apple and lime” and a “grapefruit finish [that] invites the next sip.”

Magyarics returned to the New Zealand well during a visit to Tallula, pitching the 2007 Spy Valley Pinot Noir ($24) as the perfect accompaniment to a mushroom-goat cheese medley. “It’s got juicy blueberries and red fruits … a touch of floridity (violet specifically), and a firm enough backbone to stand alongside a variety of dishes,” Magyarics says of the versatile red.

Meanwhile, Parrott’s trek across the PassionFish carte eventually led him to the Marc Tomio Junmai Daiginjo Sake ($55), a rice wine eliciting “dry melon,” “chalky” and “dried pear” sensations. “Like a great fino sherry, the finish cranks up the nuttiness and saline depth,” he says of the Japanese stunner.

(April 2010)