Chateau du Cedre, Cotes de Gascogne Le Blanc "Blandine", 2024

Here is a fun left turn: Chateau du Cedre is best known as one of the top names in Cahors, the dark, Malbec country of southwest France, but Blandine is their crisp, easy-drinking white made from Gascony fruit. It is a blend built on Colombard and Ugni Blanc with a small splash of Sauvignon Blanc, given 24 hours of skin contact and a few months on fine lees in tank for a touch of texture. The 2024 is fresh off the press and made to be drunk young and cold. This is your warm-weather house white, zippy, citrusy and built for value, not contemplation.