Now that Taylor Swift has gone and ruined Sancerre for everyone, ordinary wine drinkers like moi have to look for alternatives to the popular but scarce Loire Valley label.
Just kidding, Swifties. Sancerre shortages have been a recurring wine-biz story for at least 2-3 years now, due to harvest challenges and other supply-demand mismatch issues. So, it’s not all Taylor’s fault.
But the problem remains: If you crave the crisp, mineral-y refreshment of this elegant Sauvignon Blanc from the village of Sancerre, you’re going to have to drive around town, and quite possibly pay up. It’s hard to find Sancerre under $45-$50 in wine stores here, and bottles in restaurants are regularly priced over $100. It’s just too much for a simple, early-drinking wine that’s always tasty but never mind-blowing.
One solution? Sancerre dupes like Menetou-Salon (the neighboring commune) or the regional Loire Valley appellation. The latter wine is what we are pouring tonight.
Delaunay’s “Le Grand Ballon” is named for the sight-seeing balloons that waft over the chateaux that are scattered around the river valley. A local shop floated this bottle (sorry) as an alternative to appease the thirsty-but-frugal masses clamoring for Sancerre, and it absolutely rises (sorry, sorry) to the occasion.
Very pale lemon color with aromas of unripe pear, lemon juice, gooseberry jelly, crab apple, and cut Bermuda grass. A dry, clean and cat-less (but slightly vegetal) palate of sweet green bell pepper, tomatillo, green apple, and apple blossom. This wine ends with a rather lengthy citrus and mineral-water finish, punctuated by a thrilling tropical tease: A squirt of tangy yellow grapefruit that unfolds in the mouth.
Loire Valley whites are brilliant food wines, but I didn’t pair mine. Instead, I savored it as a snack, admiring how the range of classic Sauvignon Blanc flavors evolve from first sniff to last sip.
This wine doesn’t have the lip-stinging acidity or expressive minerality of the top-tier Sauvignon Blancs from the Central Loire. But it wows with its freshness and surprising sequential depth. At under $15, it’s a really well-made, great-value bottle that you should swiftly snap up.
Bottle: Thierry Delaunay “Le Grand Ballon” Val de Loire Sauvignon Blanc (2023) – France
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc (100%)
ABV: 12%
Suggested retail: $14.99
My rating: 8.9 (out of 10)
Further reading:
Wine Spectator: Taylor Swift-Endorsed Sancerre Sells Out Amid “Champagne Problems”
The Wines Chaser: Problem with Sancerre is…
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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