Kim Crawford Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2014: Kim Crawford defines affordable, available Marlborough, New Zealand, sauvignon blanc. This checks off every important box in the sauv blanc profile for color, aroma, taste, length. Beautiful pale yellow color; melon, pineapple, citrus, whiff of honeysuckle and blades of grass on the nose; fruit sweetness on the attack; light, crisp, broad, delicious mid-palate; grapefruit, white peach, apricot, green apple, lilt of lemongrass and lime; food-friendly, cutting acidity; long, mouth-watering finish. Kim Crawford sauv blanc is khaki pants of wine—it goes with almost everything. It is virtually impossible to screw up a food pairing, plus, it is almost always available. KC makes more than a half million cases of this each year (well more than six million bottles), and their maintenance of quality amid such quantity is astonishing display of skill. Superb value-price effort. $15-18
