The 2009 Sauvignon Saurint, from old vines in Buttrio, is a more reserved, steely wine. Crushed rocks, minerals, lime peel, mint and peaches take shape beautifully in the glass as the wine opens up. The inner tension here is a marvel. All of the elements come together beautifully, leading to a powerful, tightly coiled finish. This is the most vibrant of the 2009 whites. The Saurint seems to have absorbed the heat of the vintage with less impact than the Banel, but both are thrilling wines. I drank a second bottle at a local restaurant a few days later and was equally impressed. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2016. Enzo Pontoni is simply on another planet. In the best years his wines frankly have no peers in Italy. The textural richness and depth Pontoni coaxes from his old-vine parcels is a marvel. The 2009 whites show an extra dimension of ripeness from a heat wave in August of that year that gave the wines more body than is often the case but without the excess of truly torrid vintages. Quite simply, I was blown away by what I tasted. For what it’s worth, I bought as much of these wines as I could afford. As usual, the wines are aged in French oak (roughly 40% new) and the malolactic fermentations are typically blocked.Importer: Small Vineyards, Seattle, WA; tel. (206) 933-6767

The 2007 Sauvignon Saurint is a powerhouse. The wine possesses notable thrust and length on the palate, with superb ripeness of fruit and a warm, enveloping personality. There is plenty of minerality underneath but the wine remains mostly about a full-bodied expression of fruit. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2012. This is another set of gorgeous wines from proprietor Enzo Pontoni. Sadly the wines remain nearly impossible to find, even in Italy. I remember visiting the estate a few years back and trying (without any luck) to purchase a few bottles. Pontoni showed me his allocations. I assumed we were looking at case allocations, but the numbers turned out to be bottles! For those lucky enough to find them, these remain some of Italy’s finest wines. 2007 was a challenging vintage for whites, yet Pontoni rose to the challenge and made some wonderful wines that capture the essence of his vineyards. Unfortunately Pontoni wasn’t happy with his 2005 Merlots (from another difficult vintage) and he decided not to bottle the wines. Importer: Small Vineyards, Seattle, WA; tel. (206) 933-6767