I’ll admit it: It’s novelty that primarily drives my personal wine choices. Why drink something you’ve already tasted? There are exceptions (for exceptional wines and comfort wines)–but most nights, I just want to try something new.
The second most important thing is price. And so today, we have an inexpensive and novel wine: Tacama Vineyards’ Gran Blanco, a Peruvian white blend based on Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.
Sauv Blanc plus Chard, you say? In European and North American wine these grapes are rarely blended together, per the proud traditions of the Loire Valley (Sauvignon Blanc-land) and Burgundy (Chardonnay country). But in the Southern Hemisphere, they’ve kicked those old rules to the curb. They grow whatever grows, and make blends from whatever works.
And you know what? It does work. The Sauvignon Blanc leads with acidity and fresh character. The Chardonnay lends some body and ripe fruit. And the Chenin Blanc is in there at 10% of the blend, doing…something. (Checks notes.) What is Chenin Blanc good for again?
This wine is buttery yellow with a slight green tinge. (You can’t see it because of The Wine Authority‘s mood lighting, so you’ll just have to take my word for it.) It was served very cold, as the winemaker recommends.
The nose is apple/pear, grapefruit, lime zest, lemongrass or regular grass. One taster noted ginger. The body is medium with quite high acidity. Overall, it’s clean and tropical with a bright mineral finish (no noticeable oak influence). It’s most refreshing when it’s very well-chilled, but as it warms it exudes appealing ripe pineapple and stone fruit flavors. The combination is chimeric..and delicious.
I chose this bottle to pair with a smorgasbord of H-E-B sushi on a Monday night and was wowed. It really is a near-perfect sushi wine.
Sushi wines are hard. There are pairing conventions, but they sometimes fail you.
I don’t really like sake (sorry). A bone-dry Sauv Blanc would’ve tasted thin and harsh after a pile of eel sauce and wasabi mayo. Riesling and Gewurztraminer–as much I adore them with sushi or without–have intense flavors that can cloy after a while or overpower delicate fish.
This white blend, by contrast, is fresh and aromatic but still has enough neutral character to play nice with different foods. (Oh, maybe that’s the point of Chenin Blanc!)
Tacama Vineyards is the oldest wine estate in South America, established in the 1540s. If you travel to Southern Peru–which I have done only vicariously, through TripAdvisor–you can visit the Tacama tasting room and cellars. On the hacienda’s historic grounds you can experience a wine tour, a pisco tasting, and a marinera (equestrian show) all in one stop. The Ica Valley is beautiful and it’s definitely going on my wine bucket list.
Anyway, Gran Blanco is a dry, fruit-forward white blend that most people will be likely to enjoy. It’s hand-harvested and harmoniously blended. An example of the practical alchemy that can happen when New World winemakers get creative with French grape varieties. I found it to be a great value–an extremely versatile and balanced wine for the price.
“Balanced” and “versatile” can mean plain or safe, and I don’t know that I would call this wine a stunner on its own. But it really sparkles in the presence of food. It’d be marvelous with sushi, poke, or ceviche. Regional dishes, too! The export hub Peru Marketplace recommends pairing it with coastal Peruvian cuisine: Tuna-stuffed causa, lima bean salad, fried fish jalea, and steamed mussels with vegetable relish.
Bottle: Tacama Gran Blanco Tres Cepas (2022)
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc (55%), Chardonnay (35%), Chenin Blanc (10%)
ABV: 13%
Suggested retail: $11
My rating: 8.1 (out of 10)
Review disclosure: I was not compensated or provided any free products for this review. Opinions expressed on The Wine Fairy blog are entirely my own.
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