Veteran winemaker Joe Dobbes is focusing on small lot wines from special vineyards under his new Iterum label. This inaugural Sauvignon Blanc is from an old vineyard Dobbes has worked with since 1989. The wine is effusively aromatic and very much in line with top quality Sancerre. It combines chalky, wet stone aromas with lime, grapefruit and fresh cut green apple. But then it performs amazingly on the palate with a rich smooth texture and multi-layered flavors. In the finish it turns on the crisp acidity, lime and lemon peel notes that linger. It finishes with a beautiful, long aftertaste. Technical details explain it did not undergo malolactic fermentation, and was fermented 50% in stainless and 50% in Acacia barrels. It was then aged 7 months before bottling. The label tells us 1,392 bottles were made, and this review is based on bottle #1069.
Iterum Wines, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Sauvignon Blanc 2021
By Norm Roby