FÁUTOR | Fumé Blanc | 2017
sauvignon blanc

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The wine we are going to review today is one that we hold dear to our hearts, as this is the wine that conquered our hearts from day one – Fumé Blanc 2017 by Fáutor Winery. This is a single-varietal, barrel aged sauvignon blanc wine from the Valul lui Traian region, a wine that spent 6 month in oak to gain more complexity. Oaked sauvignon blanc wines are mostly referred to as ‘fumé blanc’ – a term that was invented by Robert Mondavi in an effort to increase the popularity of sauvignon blanc wines in the United States. Fumé Blanc is a word-game that derives from the famous Pouilly-Fumé AOC of Loire and the name of the grape variety that made this small AOC so famous all over the world – sauvignon blanc. But enough theory – without further ado, on to the tasting!
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

Visual
Pastel green color with yellowish-green shades towards the rim of the glass.

Olfactory
The nose is strong, filled with a mix of tropic, citrus and sweet fruits and some delicate herbaceous flavours: passion fruit, green pear, lemon, acacia blossom, overripe gooseberry, white nectarine, lime, green melon, white cherry, peach, apricot, white apple, melissa, pineapple, elderflower, marguerite daisy, vanilla, fresh oakwood, cashew and some insistent hints of pear candy.

Gustatory
The wine is dry, with high alcohol level, high acidity and firm tannin. It feels oaky, elegant and supple, with a nuanced citrusy-tropical accent and a crisp, full body. This is a quite ripe, smooth and velvety wine, with nuanced woody hints and mouth watering acidity. The wine has a good balance and a very appealing mouthfeel, as it tastes fruity-tropical, complex and well structured – a noble and fine sauvignon blanc wine indeed.

Aftertaste
The wine has a long finish and a pleasing, woody-crisp aftertaste.
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This is definitely an exceptional wine of Moldova and, with a total of 92.0 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Conclusion: this is a very fine sauvignon blanc wine, one that is very close to the summit of its prime form – clearly, still on the rise, therefore we would recommend 12 to 18 more months of bottle ageing. What makes this wine truly unique, is that it mixes almost to perfection the different flavour profiles of tropical fruits, citrus fruits, stone fruits and those floral-herbaceous hints. In order to explore the full potential of this wine, we would recommend to pair it with fruity-aromatic or creamy dishes, like for example a pear, date & walnut salad with blue cheese or some classic pesto shrimp pasta. Enjoy!

WineStatistics tasting results:

FÁUTOR
Fumé Blanc | 2017

grape: | sauvignon blanc |

region: Moldova | Valul lui Traian

overall rating: | 92.0 |

maturity: on the rise

conclusion: exceptional | (a must try)

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© The WineStatistics ratings are based solely on our own knowledge of the world of wine and on our personal wine tastes, which may, or may not, differ from yours – the reader. Just remember that there are no absolutes of right and wrong in wine appreciation.