Across the Loire from Sancerre, on flinty limestone soils, Sauvignon Blanc takes on a smoky, gunflint character that gives Pouilly-Fumé its name — the "smoked" Pouilly. Taut, mineral and citrus-driven, it is Sancerre's mirror twin, often a shade rounder and smokier for the silex soils.
The late Didier Dagueneau proved just how profound and ageworthy this terroir could be. Together with Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé sets the world standard for cool-climate, mineral Sauvignon Blanc — the antithesis of the grape's tropical New World style.