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PREMIUM

Chilean Sauvignon Blanc £10-£30: Panel tasting results

Geography and winemaking ambition were key factors in a tasting that celebrated the best of these highly popular aromatic dry whites.

Peter Richards MW, Ben Gubbins and Dirceu Vianna Junior MW tasted 78 wines with 3 Outstanding and 11 Highly recommended.

Chilean Sauvignon Blanc: Panel tasting scores

78 wines tasted

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 3

Highly recommended 11

Recommended 28

Commended 15

Fair 18

Poor 3


Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit their 100% Sauvignon Blanc still white wines in the price range £10-£30 in the UK


Let’s start with the positives. Six of the 14 wines scoring 90 points or above here came from San Antonio or Leyda – regions that earned plaudits from this tasting. Judge Ben Gubbins also noted the ‘promise’ offered by Osorno in the south.

In general, the diversity of origins in the top-scoring wines was notable in this tasting, with quality to be found from Atacama and Limarí in the north to Malleco and Osorno in the deep south. The latter regions tended to deliver understated aromas yet intense palate profiles, while Atacama and Limarí majored on peppery, almost saline characters and great vibrancy.

The best Sauvignons from coastal terroirs such as Leyda, San Antonio, Casablanca and Aconcagua combined aromatic lift with structure and layers of flavour.


Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores from the Chilean Sauvignon Blanc panel tasting



Chilean Sauvignon Blanc panel tasting scores


The judges

Peter Richards MW is the DWWA Regional Chair for Chile. An awarded broadcaster and writer with a focus on Chilean wine, he is co-creator and presenter of wine and travel series The Wild Side of Wine on winemasters.tv and, with his wife Susie Barrie MW, he co-hosts the chart-topping Wine Blast podcast.

Ben Gubbins is general manager and WSET wine educator at Vagabond Wines in London. A native of Chile, he previously worked as UK & Europe sales director for Dos Andes Wines before joining Vagabond in 2013.

Dirceu Vianna Junior MW is a wine writer, consultant and educator. Moving to the UK from Brazil in 1989, he was a director at some of the UK’s top distributors, becoming a Master of Wine in 2008, then co-authoring the awarded Portuguese- language book Conheça Vinhos (‘Understanding Wine’, Editora Senac).


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