Savennières is “not an easygoing sort of wine.”

Savennières is “not an easygoing sort of wine,” said Eric Asimov in The New York Times. Produced from chenin blanc in France’s Loire Valley, it can smell like wet wool when poured, and its acidity can be “somewhat impenetrable.” But given air, Savennières typically blossoms into a wine “substantial enough to warm the insides” yet “elegant enough to dance intimately with many different foods.”

2010 Château Socherie Clos des Perrières ($29). This “complex” but relatively mellow example is made “with great finesse.”

2007 Damien Laureau Le Bel Ouvrage ($46). A “tightly knit” and “silken textured” alternative.

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2007 Nicolas Joly Clos de la Coulée de Serrant ($93). You want a challenge? Joly recommends decanting his austere, amber-colored flagship wine two days before you drink it.