I must reveal a secret to you. When the editor-in-chief commissioned me to write this article, she noted in the email: "we have a new winery, but in the article start with a general characterization of the grape variety and region, and at the end move on to the winery." However, when doing research and preparing to write this text, I visited the producer's website and right at the beginning saw a photo of the winery owner with a cat in her arms, I couldn't resist the temptation to start from the end. Because there's a high probability that if you love sauvignon blanc, you also love cats. Just like Annick Tinel-Blondelet. We'll return to the winery, but meanwhile let's check what sauvignon blanc and the Loire Valley – its cradle – are actually all about. Queen from the Second Seat We have at least several "sauvignons," and their name probably derives from the French word sauvage, meaning "wild," which may refer to the fact that these vines are endemic to France, and thus once grew there wild. The two best-known "sauvignons" are of course the red vine of the Vitis vinifera species – cabernet sauvignon and the white one, the heroine of this article, from the same species – sauvignon blanc. Where does the similarity in names come from? Well, sauvignon blanc can be considered a direct ancestor of cabernet sauvignon, which is a cross between sauvignon blanc and cabernet franc. Would you have guessed that cabernet derives from sauvignon blanc? Sauvignon blanc doesn't have it easy in life – not only is its offspring more famous than it is, but additionally its entire "life" it's second to chardonnay. One could venture to say that sauvignon blanc is the Barbaresco among white grape varieties. Did anyone say it must be a king who rules the kingdom, and not a queen? And sauvignon blanc is precisely that queen who, somewhat from a side seat, rules the kingdom of white wines. It may not have as much class as chardonnay, but what potential, verve, unexpectedness and feistiness it has. Because in wines from which grape variety, depending on origin, will we find pink grapefruit, melon, gooseberry, asparagus, flowers, pomelo, lime, herbs, wet stones and flint? It's our queen, who doesn't want the obvious – she travels and searches, and wherever she happens to land, she absorbs what's best and becomes it. However, her roots are in the Loire Valley. And traveling with her – or after her – to the Loire, we must always arrive. And there, as at home, at her royal court there is less madness and more class and elegance. Fewer tropical fruits and more cool distance, cool yet not devoid of a certain dose of explosiveness thanks to a note of the aforementioned flint. Loire sauvignon blanc is fresh, acidic and mineral thanks to the limestone soils of Sancerre, and also subtly "smoky" due to the flinty subsoil – hence, according to one theory, the name of the Pouilly-Fumé appellation (fumé means "smoky," "smoked" in French). However, it's not devoid of fruitiness in the form of notes of ripe gooseberry, quince, lime, and the entire composition is closed by a subtly herbal touch of chamomile. Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé Among wine appellations in the Loire Valley, two stand out especially – Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé. It's from these that the most noble wines from the sauvignon blanc variety come. The winemaking history of Sancerre dates back to the 1st century AD. The city called Gortona, and later Saint-Thibault, is located at a strategic point both for vine cultivation and for trade – at the foot of the fertile and flinty-limestone hills of the Sancerre region, and simultaneously on the banks of the Loire, which in this area intersected with the Via Romana road. These factors made Gortona a significant Gallo-Roman port city. Even before the Roman conquest of Gaul, the Celtic tribe Bituriges dominated here, known for cultivating grapes called Bitrurious. When in 313 AD, thanks to Emperor Constantine, Christianity became the official religion, the popularity and production of wine increased even more. The next qualitative and quantitative leap took place in the 11th and 12th centuries thanks to monks from the Saint Satur abbey, when the castle with defensive walls was also built, meant to guard access to the developing region. The castle tower in Sancerre can be admired to this day. Interestingly, this region, like all winemaking, developed so vigorously that in the 17th century King Louis XIII banned further planting of vines; this ban was only lifted by the French Revolution in the 18th century. Unfortunately, the golden age for winemaking was soon to end with the phylloxera plague, which decimated European vineyards – only thanks to new plantings on rootstocks from North America was it possible to restore the vineyards to life. However, after 1893, it was decided to focus primarily on white grape varieties, and above all on...? Exactly – sauvignon blanc. The situation is similar with Pouilly-Fumé from the Pouilly-sur-Loire region – the history of this region also dates back to Gallo-Roman times with increased flourishing in the 12th century. Both these regions obtained AOC status one after the other – Sancerre in 1936, and Pouilly-Fumé in 1937. Domaine Tinel-Blondelet This is a 15-hectare estate managed since 1983 by Annick Tinel-Blondelet, who took it over from her parents: Camille and Fernand. The winery took its current shape well over 50 years ago, but the wine history of this family goes back twelve generations to the 16th century and winemaker Guillaume Blondelet in Chaulgnes. Initially, Fernand didn't focus solely on vine cultivation, but on agriculture in general, which changed with his opening of the first tasting cellar on the Nationale 7 route. The cellar is called (because it exists to this day) "A la Cave du Vigneron." A few years later, he expanded the estate by acquiring several plots in the town of Thauvenay near Sancerre. Thanks to these plots, the winery could begin creating wines in the Sancerre appellation, and these parcels are among the most valuable in the family's possession. However, Domaine Tinel-Blondelet is not only Sancerre, but also Pouilly-Fumé and Pouilly-sur-Loire. And although sauvignon blanc cultivation significantly predominates, in their portfolio we'll also find wines from pinot noir or chasselas. Annick herself obtained a diploma in viticulture and enology in Beaune. She's a lover not only of cats, but of nature as such – out of consideration for this, the winery adheres to the la lutte raisonnée method, which can be translated as "reasoned struggle," and this approach is characterized by striving to minimize as much as possible the use of all kinds of chemicals and pesticides during wine production. At the same time, she remains faithful to tradition and the region, trying to reflect as faithfully as possible in her wines the specificity of the local terroir and the unique soils in this region: limestone, flinty and clay.