Arkenstone Estate, Howell Mountain – Napa Valley (California) Sauvignon Blanc 2017

 One doesn’t normally think of Howell Mountain as a fountain of complex white wines – after all its murky Cabernet Sauvignons are what gave the region its reputation – but Arkenstone and others have shown that Sauvignon Blanc does quite well in the Eastern elevations.  As one might expect with a five-year old release, the wine has a lot more wood components to add to its flavors, though they are not edgy, toasty or dulling ones.  In fact, the wine is quite lively but with more-tropical fruit notes and mellow vanillins and with less green fruit than most American Sauvignons normally exhibit.  It is also the kind of food wine that complements rather than contrasts, and so goes quite well with complex poultry dishes – a “big dinner” wine.