Last month, we focused on a female wine importer from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Indira Bayer.  This month, I want to focus on another: Mary Taylor. 

Mary Taylor began working in wine in the 1990s, selling French and Italian wine at New York City wine auctions, before moving into retail. She learned to appreciate wine the European way:  not as a luxury good reserved for special occasions, but as a necessary, everyday, agricultural product.  She moved to Bordeaux, and began to fully understand the idea of “terroir,” the reason why Pinot Noir from one village tastes different from Pinot Noir from the neighboring village. This is why many European wines have villages or place names rather than the grape on the label.

She realized that Americans needed a brand they could trust to bridge their knowledge gap between grape-focused labels and place-of-origin labels, in order to fully understand and appreciate terroir. She came up with her elegant White Label, and began working with small growers to produce high quality, sustainably-grown, regionally-distinctive wines at accessible prices.

At the 2018 Burlington County Bar Foundation Wine, Beer and Bourbon Tasting, I served a 2017 Mary Taylor Anjou Blanc (Loire Valley, France). 100% Chenin Blanc, this wine is sourced from Pascal Biotteau from his family estate Château d’Avrillé, by the village of Saint-Jean-de-Mauvrets, situated on the old Roman road from Angers to Poitiers. Sustainably grown on a blend of slate, sandstone and schist, this 2017 Chenin was fermented in stainless steel. Focused, refreshing, and perfectly-weighted between honey, peach and apricot, with slate minerality and bright acidity. 12% abv. Available at WineWorks and West Deptford BuyRite for $13.

At a virtual wine tasting last summer, one of the wines I tasted was Mary Taylor’s 2018 Bordeaux Rouge. Arguably the most famous wine region in the world, Bordeaux is well-known for its prized First Growth Chateaux, and their astronomically priced-wines. There is another side to Bordeaux, the small farmers who share the banks of the Garonne and the Dordogne rivers with the famous Chateaux, and it is to this side of Bordeaux that Mary Taylor searched for high quality, affordable Bordeaux.

This wine is sourced from winemaker Jean Marc Barthez, president of a small co-operative winery in Monségur, a village about one hour’s drive southeast of the city of Bordeaux, founded by Eleanor of Aquitaine in the 13th Century.  The co-op is a collective of small family farms, many certified organic, who produce Bordeaux wine their families and neighbors can afford. The 2016 blend is 50% Merlot, with equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc making up the other 50%.

Unlike most red Bordeaux wines, there is no oak used in the aging process of this wine, only stainless steel, allowing the terroir to shine through. Blackberries, plum, forest floor, and graphite aromas on the nose continue through the palate, with bright acidity and an elegant finish. This well-balanced wine would pair perfectly with grilled vegetables, duck breast, marbled steaks, or nothing at all. 13% abv. $18 at West Deptford Super BuyRite.

Mary Taylor has sixteen “White “Label” wines, from France, Italy, and Spain, and I intend to try them all. Santé!