2020 Angel Falls Sauvignon Blanc Touraine Loire 750 ml

David Choi isn’t a winemaker, but he makes some of the most exciting wines we’ve tasted in recent memory. 

Backed by a huge online following of enophiles, Choi forms partnerships with top winemakers and growers on both sides of the Atlantic, authoring limited-production releases that sell out in weeks.

For this Touraine Sauvignon Blanc, Choi headed straight to the top of the Loire Valley hierarchy by partnering with Domaine Fournier—one of the most respected producers in the region, one that’s made multiple appearances on Wine & Spirits’ Top 100 Wineries list.

This bottling hails from vines 25 to 50 years in age, drawn off Fournier parcels hand-selected by Choi. Fournier’s holdings span some of the best of the Touraine—the area that encompasses the most famous homes of Sauvignon Blanc in the world: Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé. 

There, the cool climate of the Loire allows for the grapes to ripen slowly, developing layers of tropical- and stone-fruit flavors while preserving the zesty brightness that makes Sauvignon Blanc so versatile at the table. To preserve the vibrancy and seductive fruit of the wine, Fournier and Choi ferment and age the wine solely in stainless steel tanks—no oak influence.

Though Angel Falls may sound more like a new West Coast wine label than one that contains juice from a blue-blooded, old-school Loire Valley estate, their wildly expressive Sauvignon Blanc is the result of traditions from both sides of the Atlantic: An impeccable marriage of zingy New World style and coveted Old World terroir.