Wine: Seresin Sauvignon Blanc

Seresin is truly one of my favorite wines. As New Zealand sauvignon blancs have become so popular, it's strange not to see Seresin in more restaurants and wine shops.

The wine has a beautiful, yellow-gold color and is almost perfectly clear. Even at a relatively cool temperature, the Seresin's bouquet can't help but make you smile with scents typical to the nicest sauvignon blancs: hints of citrus, passion fruit, and a surprisingly effective grassy note. While I've read others say it has a generally herbaceous quality, I distinctly smell fresh-cut grass in the bouquet and love it.

Seresin has a nice balance, at once crisp and rich. My favorite in-the-mouth quality is the mineral flavor of the wine -- a reflection, probably, of the three different soils the grapes came from. An excellent match for many foods; I've enjoyed it with everything from subtle, non-spicy Thai dishes to salads with fresh goat cheese and pickled beets.

This wine should be had for $18/bottle or less.

Value: 3.5
Color & Clarity: 4.0
Bouquet: 3.5
Flavor: 3.5