The Loire Valley is a sprawling wine region in northwest France — and the Centre-Loire (named because it is located in the geographic center of France) is the home to some of its most renowned wines, including the widely beloved Sancerre.

Today we’re looking at four Centre-Loire wines, all composed of sauvignon blanc grapes and all produced in a tight geographic area — but each with a distinct focus. All are from the 2013 vintage except for the 2014 Pouilly-Fume. Start by getting a sense of where these regions are in relation to one another, then dig into the reviews.

2013 Joseph Mellot Domaine de Bellecours Sancerre – Fresh and fragrant, with a nice balance of tropical and citrus notes, plus a modest, tart grapefruit character that emerges on the clean, pretty finish. Refreshing and acidic, but still fruit-forward, it’s a textbook example of what an everyday Sancerre should be. A- / $20

2013 Domaine de Chatenoy Menetou-Salon – Nice combination of citrus and melon here, with some tropical character. Modest acidity on the finish, with an echo of melon notes at the very end. A simple and fresh wine. B+ / $16

2013 Les Pierres Plates Reuilly – An instantly funkier wine, with notes of blue cheese on the nose, and a little barnyard character on the palate that mixes with some tropical notes. That actually helps to add some character to an otherwise straightforward wine, but a little cheese goes a long way. B / $20

2014 Pascal Jolivet Pouilly-Fume – One of the most acid-forward and melon-flecked of the bunch, this powerful wine has a huge backbone that almost borders on ammonia-scented — though the essence of cantaloupe and honeydew swoop in late to save the day. B+ / $24

2013 Domaine de Chatenoy Menetou-Salon

$16

8.5

Rating

8.5/10