Whitehall Lane has elevated sauvignon blanc in this price tier to a new standard. While a smidgeon of semillion is part of the blend, it possesses all that is great about the sauvignon blanc grape, and then some. I haven't tasted a wine this sophisticated for $13 in a dog's age. You can tell in the first sip that someone was paying very close attention to what the fruit was telling them to do during the vinification process.

Whitehall Lane is an often-overlooked, family-owned Napa winery that has crept and clawed its way to notoriety over the past few decades. It's succeeded by offering wines in the mid-range price category that consistently drink as well as wines that are $10 more per bottle. This wine is an excellent example of how they've managed to earn respect and notice. It's 70 percent stainless tank fermented-the preferred way to treat this grape. In a rather expensive manner for wine priced under $20 per bottle, the remaining 30 percent is fermented in new French oak, then aged two more months in the oak before being blended back into the bulk of the juice.

The wine, pale, clear yellow in color, has aromas like a bright spring day. Lime, fresh grapefruit and grass do a round-robin tango in your nose while melon and pear watch from the orchestra pit. Once it passes your lips it's clear that the bandleader is the crisp and refreshing acid. The acid steals the show in a benevolent way; it allows each of the individual flavors to play a jazzy solo. What a ride for 13 bucks.

Craig Pierce is club house manager of Baker Hill Golf Club. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it