Château Beau Reve farms a small patch of Bordeaux where white grapes have always had a harder time being taken seriously than the reds. This is a dry white from the 2022 vintage, medium in body, low in tannin, and built around citrus rather than oak. It comes from the same region that made Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot famous, but nothing about it tastes like those wines.
- Bordeaux, France — 2022 vintage.
- 12.5% ABV, dry, medium acidity.
- 750ml bottle.
- Citrus, green apple, lemon, wet stone.
How it is made
Bordeaux is one of the few places on earth where the appellation rules name the permitted grapes down to the variety. For the dry whites, that list is Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Muscadelle, sometimes with a small share of Ugni Blanc. Sémillon brings the roundness and the waxy weight; Sauvignon Blanc brings the green apple and the cut. The blend is the point, not a single grape.
How it tastes
Pale yellow in the glass. The nose is aromatic and layered, floral and fruity at once, with lemon and green apple sitting over something stonier. On the palate it is lively rather than soft, medium in body, dry, with a roundness that keeps the acidity from reading sharp. Low tannin, so the texture is all about weight and freshness rather than grip.
Good to know
Bordeaux produces far more red than white, and the dry whites have long lived in the shadow of the famous sweet wines of Sauternes. That has kept them under-priced for what they are: the same region, the same rules, the same clay and limestone, at a fraction of the attention.
