Ferrari Carano's Fumé Blanc: The Oak-Aged Sauvignon You've Been Missing

What happens when traditional French winemaking techniques meet California innovation at a price point we can all afford? Pure magic in a glass. Ferrari Carano's North Coast Fumé Blanc 2023 represents the pinnacle of value white wine, scoring 92 points from top critics while remaining accessible at just $10.99.

Most casual wine enthusiasts don't realize that "Fumé Blanc" simply refers to oak-aged Sauvignon Blanc, a style that transforms the typically bright, zesty varietal into something with remarkable depth and complexity. The genius behind this particular bottle lies in its balanced approach – 70% fermented in crisp, clean stainless steel tanks while 30% enjoys time in neutral French oak barrels. The result? A wine that maintains refreshing fruit character while developing sophisticated texture.

The real secret weapon here is Ferrari Carano's traditional sur lie aging process, where the wine rests on spent yeast cells for three months with bi-weekly stirring. This patient technique creates an unexpected creaminess that blooms mid-palate, complementing the tropical fruit, peach, and subtle coconut notes. Unlike aggressively herbaceous New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs that can overwhelm, this expression remains smooth, lingering, and perfectly balanced – proof that exceptional winemaking doesn't require an exceptional price tag. Grab a bottle of this surprisingly sophisticated North Coast gem and discover what Domain Dave wishes he hadn't overlooked for so many years. Your taste buds (and wallet) will thank you!

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Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Ferrari Carano
• 0:55 What is Fumé Blanc?
• 2:33 Oak Aging and Surlise Process
• 4:22 Tasting Notes and Final Thoughts

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:03

Hey, welcome, it's Domain Dave. Again CheapWineFindercom. Today we have a wine that's been around for a while. This is Ferrari Carano North Coast Fumé Blanc 2023. Ferrari Carano was Dan and Rhonda Carano. They started the winery in Sonoma in 1981. And a few years back, when Don Carano passed, they were purchased by Foley Family Wines. I've got links to all this stuff on the cheapwinefightercom website and Foley has a really, really good portfolio. I mean Ferrari Carano, which is top-notch, isn't even the top one there. I mean it's one good thing after another, not that Ferrari-Carano isn't top-notch.

Speaker 1: 0:55

So what is Fumé Blanc? This is way back when the North Coast. This is in Sonoma. This is the North Coast. North Coast is Sonoma, napa, mendocino Lake County and a couple other smaller ones. North Coast is basically Bordeaux wines and Bordeaux Blanc, savion Blanc and Semillon a little bit of Semillon. Bordeaux Blanc is Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon a little bit of Semillon, and not all of them, but they are Semillon.

Speaker 1: 1:31

Bordeaux Blanc is often barrel aged and the top ones can be aged for 25 years or more some of the wines with the longest longevity. So if you add a little oak to it, they call it Fumé Blanc. That's the style. The thing about it is that not everybody does that. I think Mondavi, and here it's Fumé Blanc. Fumé means smoky and Blanc is white, smoky white wine. I don't really get the smokiness out of it, but that's what it was called. So when you see Fumiblanque, that means that there's some oak barrel aging involved, and there is here, but it doesn't have to be. You couldn't have oak barrel aging. They can just call it Sauvignon Blanc. So it's one of those things that if you see to me blocky, there is oak aging, but if you're looking for an oak age savion block, it might not say it on there. So there you are.

Speaker 1: 2:33

So this is 70 percent um aged in stainless steel, like always. I mean virtually 99 of all the uh price and this was value price. I got it, found it for 1099, I believe this also got 92 points by one of the leading wine reviewers. 92 points is legit. So it's 70% stainless steel, like most every other Sauvignon Blanc, but 30% of the juice was aged in older French oak barrels. Now, older barrels don't have much flavor to impart, but if you age and ferment wine with stainless steel, that is air tight, perfectly air tight Oak barrel. While they're water tight, they're not completely air tight and a little bit of oxygen can interact with the wine and that little bit of oxygen will make a difference.

Speaker 1: 3:40

It's also aged surlise for three months. Surlise is the dead yeast and grape residue from the fermentation pressing and they leave it in with the wine and it's supposed to impart some flavor. A lot of times you say it's nutty salty. I didn't get nutty salty here, but when you stir it Batinage in France and they've stirred it every other week for three months it gave this wine a little bit of cream, not a lot, just a little bit. It was a really nice little. Oh, it's like in the mid-palate, all of a sudden you're getting some cream.

Speaker 1: 4:24

This is the delicious wine. You know how. Maybe in the past New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc can get a little spiky. This is smooth and sleek and flavorful. It's got length, it's got a good acidity. This is a delicious wine.

Speaker 1: 4:42

I wish I'd known about it. I've known Ferrari Carano made good wine for a long time but I never, you know. But Fumé Blanc, I didn't mess with that, I was wrong. This is a really delicious wine and it's just well made. It keeps on going. It's got tropical fruit, it's got peach and pear, it's got maybe some nectarines. I got maybe some coconut milk.

Speaker 1: 5:09

It's a good tasting wine. It's delicious and it's got that oak. So you get the stainless steel and the oak, which is going to give it two different flavors. Going on, you've got the Anlis, which is something you don't. You know, usually Sauvignon Blanc is quick and easy. Here they took a little time, so it's kind of, and it still doesn't. It still costs the same as the cheap ones, the other value-priced ones. So there you go, the Ferrari Carano North Coast Spumé Blanc 2023. It's got a little bit of oak aging to it, it's got a little bit of anlise and it's got a whole lot of flavor. So that's it for me. Domain Dave cheapwinebindercom. This is a winner. I like this wine. I kind of. Why did I pass this up all these years? So I don't know, I shouldn't have. But this is a good wine, like us. If you like your podcast and stay cool, anybody else, keep it cheap. I'll be talking to you in a couple days. Bye-bye.