Wine: New Zealand’s go-to

“Sauvignon blanc is the grape that put New Zealand on the wine map,” said Pamela Busch in SFExaminer.com. As it celebrates its 40th year there, the grape now accounts for better than half of all of the nation’s vineyard space. The best bottlings have much going for them beyond the wine’s notorious “herbaceousness.” Some fine choices can still be found even in the $15 range.

2012 Yealands ($15). You’ll note “loads of gooseberry” in this single-vineyard bottling, but grapefruit, too, and “an underlying minerality.”

2011 Man O’ War ($16). Sauvignon blanc blends with 15 percent sémillon to produce “a deliciously complete wine with pleasant coffee bean and grapefruit aromas.”

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2011 Mount Beautiful ($16). “Fragrant with guava, passion fruit, and grapefruit,” this luscious North Canterbury wine also has a “bright, lively acidity.”