Wine Spectator On The Rising Fortunes Of Sauvignon Blanc

The biggest business news in Napa this summer was E.&J. Gallo’s buying spree, scooping up Rombauer Vineyards and Massican in a matter of days. The two wineries could not be more different. Rombauer produces 350,000 cases a year and owns more than 700 acres of vines in Napa Valley, Carneros, and the Sierra Foothills. Massican, a boutique label started by Dan Petroski, produces less than 10,000 cases a year and owns no vineyards or winery. Petroski buys all his grapes and makes his wine in rented space.

But what they do have in common is the color of the wines they are best known for—white. One white grape in particular continues to enjoy rising sales in the current market, and it’s a grape Rombauer and Massican both excel at. Sauvignon Blanc sales rose 1.2% to 16.6 million cases in the U.S. in 2022, according to Impact Databank. Both imported and domestic Sauvignon Blanc sales grew. What started as a renaissance for the Bordeaux grape in New Zealand—which now exports 5.6 million cases of Sauvignon Blanc to the U.S. per year—has expanded to California and elsewhere. Wine Spectator has the full story.

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