I've been a fan of New Zealand's sauvignon blancs for years -- no other country's version of the grape quite matches their racy, dazzling style, zingy gooseberry tang and live-wire acidity. The 2010 Chasing Venus is a delicious example of the breed. It's entirely fermented in stainless steel to preserve a maximum of crisp fruitiness. One cold, appetizing glass rapidly invites another, which makes it a perfect aperitif, and its citrusy edge accents seafood like a squeeze of lemon.

Chasing Venus is a brand of the Crew Wine Company, whose owner, John Giguiere, started the R.H. Phillips winery in 1983 in California's Yolo County and turned it into a major producer of popular labels such as Toasted Head. He sold the company in 2000 and in 2005 started Crew, which, along with several California wine brands, produces Chasing Venus.

Crew's winemaker, Dan Cederquist, supervises the winemaking, which emphasizes the aggressive, leap-out-of-glass style of sauvignon that put New Zealand on the wine map in the 1980s. Fruit is sourced from the Griggs, Comely Bank, Beacon Hill and Blind River vineyards in the cool climate Marborough appellation. Each contributes various flavor notes (grapefruit, herbs, kiwi and lime) and the clean, flinty finish.

If I'm in a fish restaurant facing a wine list of unfamiliar labels, I almost always pick a New Zealand sauvignon blanc, especially one from Marlborough. One of these snappy whites will almost always perform a better duet with seafood than any chardonnay but chablis. The same holds true for composed salads, light pastas and anything with goat cheese, which shares the same savory tang.

Plus, Chasing Venus is priced right and conveniently topped with a screwcap.

Elin McCoy is a wine and spirits columnist and author of "The Emperor of Wine: The Rise of Robert M. Parker, Jr. and the Reign of American Taste."

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