Sauvignon Blanc

Also known as

Fumé Blanc, Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc Musqué

On old plates as

Gros Sauvignon

Sauvignon Blanc is a white-skinned Vitis vinifera grape that originated in France. It also appears as Fumé Blanc, Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc (Musqué), Sauvignon Blanc Musque, and Sauvignon Blanc Musqué. DNA records in the VIVC international register give Savagnin Blanc as one parent and an unknown variety as the other; marker studies also show it is one parent, with Cabernet Franc, of Cabernet Sauvignon.

The grape is now widely cultivated in many of the world's wine regions. Its classic French homes are the Loire Valley, notably Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, and Bordeaux. Significant plantings also exist in New Zealand, Chile, South Africa, the United States, and Australia.

The wines are dry, light- to medium-bodied, and sharply acidic, with pungent, easy-to-recognise aromatics. Depending on climate, they smell of cut grass, nettles, blackcurrant leaf, gooseberry, and citrus; warmer examples add grapefruit, passion fruit, or tropical notes. Much of this comes from methoxypyrazines, compounds that can smell grassy, green, or even like cat's pee.

Styles range from crisp stainless-steel Loire whites to Bordeaux blends with Sémillon and Muscadelle, richer oak-aged Graves whites, and sweet Sauternes and Barsac.