Shannon Ridge is becoming a favorite in Pennsylvania. Its wines have shown up in so many Chairman Selection offerings, that it’s becoming an annual tradition to review a bottle or two of their wines. This bottling is quite a pleasant surprise, exceeding their very good 2016 Sauvignon Blanc.
I was recently talking to a student in our Wine Instructor Program about his upcoming presentation. I suggested a geeky bit of history, one that this wine is directly connected to.
The Sauvignon Blanc clone that is planted across California is called the Wente clone. However, its real lineage can be traced back to the famous Chateau d’Yquem in Bordeaux, France. It was “imported” into the USA in 1880 and had been growing here ever since.
The story doesn’t end there because the vine, known by FPS 01, was exported to New Zealand in 1965. It is now the core of the very successful NZ wine trade. Not bad for a 19th-century stowaway, eh?
So this bottle is exactly what an SB drinker wants. Bright, fresh grapefruit flavors, a touch of exotic citrus, and a touch of snipped chive and strawberry leaf on the nose.