Category Archives: Rhône Valley

Going Rhône for the dog days of August

With just a shade over two weeks to go before Labour Day, here are seven wines to see you through the last dog days of summer. Who will argue that 2010 is not the Rhône’s vintage of the decade, no matter which way you flip the calendar. Seriously, no trick daddy. Ripeness, rhythm and a profundity of fruit will allow the 2010 Rhônes to age gracefully. “Mo’ punch than your bowl of juice.” Read on for recommendations on five first-rate Rhônes, a local Riesling and the prettiest little Spanish number to “take it to da house.”

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The grapes: Garnacha, Carinena and Syrah

The history: Spain’s Montsant region is the pioneer for red blends that coalesce French varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah with indigenous grapes

The lowdown: Purple, sugar, water and complexity. A post-profanity Chris Rock “drink” for grown-ups

The food match: Roast Beef Tenderloin, tempura soft-boiled egg, yukon gold bedaub

Celler Besllum Besllum 2008 (283515, $15.95) of Cubist Picassan, “cut up, Maria,” heavenly body struts its stuff as an enchantress with an alluring Spanish, violaceous visage. A black cherry, carboniferous quartzite Popsicle for Mr. Jones.  “We all want something beautiful.”  90

The grape: Riesling

The history: Calamus is one of only two Niagara wineries in this specific locale and their Rieslings are going to be big someday

The lowdown: Against all odds, more neo-noir Germanic than Niagara is how I would describe Riesling grown on the very young Vinemount Ridge appellation that lies just above and south of the brow of the Niagara Escarpment

The food match: Grilled Portuguese Raballo Fish, good olive oil

Calamus Riesling 2010 (158642, $16.95) is locally grown on shallow east- and south-facing slopes yet acts globally dispatched and advanced. Atypically Niagara, hinting at lemon, lime and citrus but veering more into stone peach territory. Notes of sweet sedge rising from hummocky clay, loam, silt and shale. Late grace of highly perfumed, feathery, non-fermented, tart, residual, grape sweetness, wie Süssreserve?  87

The grapes: Grenache and Syrah

The history: Classic Côtes du Rhône made by Philippe Cambie

The lowdown: This CdR is really focused on texture and mouth feel. Modern and delicious

The food match: Julia Child’s Fricassée de Poulet L’Ancienne

Les Halos de Jupiter Côtes du Rhône 2010 (276956, $17.95) of Cassis and fresh mint has changed only in that the (15%) mouth-meeting Syrah seems to be more vocal in making itself heard. A Monahan monk with good habits.  “Acts like summer and walks like rain.” The Jupiter is consistent with an earlier tasting… no orphan of the storm. It strides in angelic and sweet talking. Just plain smooth, cream filled and easy to drink. This CdR gives up copious Grenache from a velvet glove, ready to perform miracles.  88

The grapes: Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre

The history: The appellation of Vacqueyras plays understudy to principals Gigondas and Châteauneuf-du-Pape

The lowdown: When it’s good, Vacqueyras blows Côtes du Rhône away and when it’s only a few dollars more, it’s grand theft vino

The food match: Garlic and Lavender Studded Pork Butt

Domaine Grandy Vacqueyras 2010 (287532, $18.95) has dogs begging from the sidewalk for its boucherie scents of roti de porc et beouf. The Mourvèdre is not shy, brooding over the softer Grenache and inky Syrah all Rihanna, smokey campfire and monstrous-like. The Grandy “tried to be expressive without bein’ aggressive,” but it wasn’t the first time a Vacqueyras was hard to resist.  89

The grape: Sangiovese

The history: Chianti’s greatest gift has yet to sweep across the globe like Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Syrah. This too will change

The lowdown: McLaren Vale (pioneered by Coriole) was its first OZ stop and now Barossa, more specifically Mt. Crawford is making a Sangiovese splash

The food match: Ziti, Holy Trinity Ragù and Reggiano Parmesan

Domain Day One Serious Sangiovese 2007 (683243, $21.95) is, as its proprietor Robin Day notes, “savoury, rustic and elegant.” Brick-red like a Sienese piazza, the Day is a bareback rider astride a Palio race horse, a muscle-dense, graceful snow horse and a tough mudder of a cart horse. Five years old and drinking at peak.   90

The Splurges

The grapes: Grenache Blanc, Roussanne

The history:  Can’t recall a white Châteauneuf-du-Pape sold in these parts other than some of the biggest icons (Beaucastel, Vieux-Telegraphe, Beaurenard)

The lowdown: You get everything you pay for and more. Same price as the (2nd wine) Coudoulet de Beaucastel Blanc for the same dough

The food match: Chicken Tagine and Cous Cous

Brotte Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc 2010 (74203, $29.95) is a veritable museum of Southern Rhône aromas. Bending piperitious lavender and nettles, mighty haughty for Grenache Blanc and chock full of nuts. Rousanne lifts the herbs and spices with blossoms orange and white. CVR** choice to enjoy now and to age five plus years.  90

The grapes: Grenache, Mourvèdre, Syrah, Vaccarèse, Cinsault and Counoise

The history: Grenache (75+%) dominates this kitchen sink Châteauneuf-du-Pape red of the Southern Rhône

The lowdown: Very few iconic CdP producers offer this kind of quality for the price. La Nerthe, Vieux Lazaret and Beaurenard are in the same league

The food match: Braised Veal Shoulder Sandwich, sharp mustard, wild leek pickle

Bosquet Des Papes Cuvée Tradition Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2010 (726687, $42.95) lives on the elegant side of the street. The 2010 CdP’s are simply stunning and while most have the pedal pressed firmly on modern metal, the BdP is grounded and down to earth. Pretty, purple colour, agrarian attitude, pastoral, mistral moulding. Builds to a crescendo of intensity in flavour, indicating 10 years should be granted to unleash the limits of its power.  90

Good to go!

Affordable August Long Weekend Wines

Napeague Walking Dunes

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From the exploration of the Walking Dunes on Long Island to a look ahead at the August civic holiday long weekend, wine persists as the imperative of investigation. Vines are like the barren landscape’s phantom forest of forever shifting powder, speaking of a specific idea, a philosophy, a métier. A forest of pitch pine and oak is buried over by wind driven, walking sands. Truth be told, the pursuit of wine is made possible by ever evolving vines, each unique to its local sense of place.

I go wining like the Montauketts and Bonackers who once worked these fruitful waters. I rake the releases and wine stores to unearth gems like the crabs and clams crawling in Montauk’s living waters.

The dry summer is creating a challenge to crops but the teeming ocean swells alive. Lobster, Fluke, Blue Fish, Scallops and especially crabs are abundant and well-priced. Look for these under $20 values to enliven your long weekend meals.

Soft Shell Crab, Fluke and Delmonico Sirloin

The grape: Pinot Gris

The history: Alsatian at heart, PG is laying down roots all over the New World

The lowdown: Arguably the finest Kiwi version I’ve found, especially at this price

The food match: Steamed Mussels in white wine, shallot, fennel and tarragon

Spinyback Pinot Gris 2010 (214569, $16.95) of sexy flesh and bone has got a lot going on for the IVR*. River walks through Maori gardens of “ginger, lemon, indigo, coriander stem and rose of hay.” Biting chalky, mineral and pear, finding the river and swimming with Notacanthus sexspinis.  89

The grape: Chardonnay

The history: Lack of oak in Chablis makes for mineral-driven wines

The lowdown: Quality is rarely high at the under $20 (non-Cru) level. This could be your Wonderwall

The food match: Steamed and Grilled Soft-Shell Crab with lime aioli

Domaine Des Malandes Chablis 2010 (111658, $18.95) is a crisp, fresh, floral and tropical oasis of quality in a sea of mediocrity. The citron pressé, “back beat, the word was on the street” Malandes is endowed of high complexity and complement.  88

The grape: Fiano

The history: Ancient varietal from southern Italy

The lowdown: The unheralded whites of the Campania are one of the wine world’s undiscovered treasures

The food match: Grilled Calamari with garlic, olive oil, lemon, capers and parsley

Terre Dora Fiano di Avellino 2010 (120048, $18.95) is always good company and accompanies warm water seafood with pairing ease. Juicy, bursting citrus and tropical, tree-fruit flavours. This Fiano of one of Terre Dora’s three terrific, single-varietal whites (along with the Greco and Falanghina). This Fiano can knock on my door anytime.  89

The grape: Syrah

The history: Noble, dark as night varietal from the Northern Rhône

The lowdown: Languedoc Syrah tends to need support from Grenache and Mourvedre but this one emulates the northern style, in a top vintage and for a song

The food match: Crispy Pork Belly and parsnip pureé

Domaine Les Yeuses Les Épices Syrah 2009 (177584, $13.95) is certainly more north than south with its smokey, cured beef and pork perambulations. Depth to raise thoughts of Septaguanarian Hermitage vines of twist and gnarl. A touch of burnt rubber and varnish but all in all a heap of Syrah for under $14.  87

The grape: Garnacha

The history: Big, juicy red of French and Iberian fame

The lowdown: Under $15 Calatayud Garnacha has become a consistent go to value

The food match: Ground Sirloin Burgers with Mahon Cheese

Filón Garnacha 2010 (280602, $14.95) is actually a bit of a misprision because of its black fruit character. Re-enacts Tuscan IGT and the most modern of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Tar, asphalt, bitter chocolate and sanguine Kirsch and very, very ripe fruit. Grand oak and tons of wine at $15.  88

The grape: Zinfandel

The history: Primate-like cousin to Primitivo from Italy and before that, Yugoslavia

The lowdown: Dry Creek Valley does this varietal like no other; sweet and dry.

The food match: Dry Rub, St. Louis Style Side Ribs

Pedroncelli Bushnell Vineyard Zinfandel 2009 (463026, $22.95) is so toothsome and bruising you may want to eat it with a fork. A sickly sweet moment is rescued by the DCV terroir. This 15.2% abv elixir of crushed and blended berries is a single-vineyard beauty that begs a question. Why pay $50 for top-tier Zinfandel when you can go Pedroncelli?  89

The Splurge

The grapes: Grenache and Syrah

The history: Storied producer of more than 200 years located near the famous Dentelles de Montmirail

The lowdown: The best Grapillon since 2001

The food match: Grilled Delmonico Sirloin Steak with cherry tomato, avocado and black beans salsa

Domaine Du Grapillon D’or Gigondas 2010 (981787, $28.95) of inky, jet black pitch is bombastic and confidently announces itself of full extraction. Blueberry compote, macerated cherries, roasted and bleeding elk all come to the visceral mind. Sweet, viscous liquor with acidity and viscous tannin. Needs 10 years or several oxygenated hours to settle in.  91

A wine tour de France

FI:AF

canada.com

The Tour de France is a 22-day, grueling test of endurance. Tasting through 22 French wines may not be the sporting equivalent, but someone’s got to do it. The Tour travels and circumnavigates a path through many of France’s storied wine regions; Bordeaux, Champagne, Burgundy, Rhône and Languedoc. The wine tour goes deeper, making stops in lesser known regions like Savoie and Jura. Here are 11 notes with 11 days to go.

Related – more wine recommendations

French wines to look for now

Alsace

Pfaffenheim Cuvée Bacchus Gewurztraminer 2010 (VINTAGES 996017, $19.95. SAQ 197228, $19.70) looks to wine a stage with its progressive and ambulatory nature like the “Cannibal,” Eddy Merckx. At once steely but also possessed of a creamy, recriminatory lycheeness. A Gewurztraminer island in a sea of mediocrity, less bitter, less off-dry. A comeuppance of residual sweetness and forward thinking expression.  88

Champagne

Henriot Souverain Brut Champagne (959643, $56.95) operates as opulent, bombastic bubbles. Conspiratorial instigator, non-traditionalist and anti-establishment. Cassius to Caesar and to Frazier. Agitated rope-a-doper laden with tropical citrus and guava to belie yeast, smoked nuts, clay and toast. The mousse is persistent if relegated to the ring’s perimeter and the cheap seats of the Colosseum.  Tasted twice.  89

Burgundy

Louis Picamelot Brut Cremant De Bourgogne (161919, $17.95) is continental breakfast at the round table where dry toast cuts a linear radius through pious citrus, namely lemon and grapefruit. A strong-armed, knightly representative for the anthology of the Burgundian bubbles culture. A polarizing character, the lance of the lot.  87

Pascal Marchand Meursault 2010 (285866, $57.95) would make for an intriguing tête-à-tête comparison to the Tawse Quarry Road from Moray’s other guy, peer Paul Pender. Marchand’s Chardonnay is multi-layered, zesty and intense. Pear and hazelnut stand out but so too does oatmeal, in an elemental, periodic way. Which leads ne’er the cheerleader MV to comment, “egg salad sandwich.”  White Burgundy with regard to the atom.  90

Domaine Gille Côtes De Nuits-Villages 2009 (210864, $28.95) is cheap talk and wine, for Burgundy that is. Clean, pure Pinot fruit, black raspberry scent. On the border of simple, elegant, well-priced Villages. Will give you the best of its love.  88

Rhône

E. Guigal Gigondas 2009 (331900, $29.95) fully elicits hedonism from southern France with rakish Guigal typicity. Blueberries baked in an Ortolan pie with essence of Molasses. Bold, brass Bassline of tannic tenderness.   89

Jura

Jean Bourdy Cotes De Jura White 2007 (286427, $24.95) is most unusual Chardonnay. “Nothing in the world smells like this son.” Tis kind to call it an “oxidative” style but truth be in the pudding. Yerba tea, malt and peat each have their moment. Scottish as if Kilgore retired to the Hebridic isle.  86

Savoie

Domaine Edmond Jacquin Altesse Rousette Savoie 2010 (277335, $17.95) is a Big Mig, a jazzy, rarely seen release that trills citrus and spice in a breezy, casual way. Altesse, also called Roussette, seems to me a superior, physiological varietal. Federer workmanlike approach, a rider like Indurain, wins fans for athletic greatness and for acting effortlessly like itself.  88

Jean Perrier & Fils Cuvée Prestige Mondeuse Vin De Savoie 2010 (272112, $14.95) visually reminds me of Portugal’s Bastardo grape and by a nose. There is sour cherry, cranberry and refreshing citrus vitality as if Viognier were supporting Syrah. Perhaps like Pliny’s “vine of least repute” but there is an acme of elegance.  87

Bordeaux

Château Haut-Vigneau 2009 (29678, $25.95) opens the door to the ’09 Bordeaux party with a Tao, raison d’être and talisman’s affordable summoning via the Left Bank’s Pessac-Léognan. Candied coffee, black cherry and tobacco, radish red. Solid PL and worth storing three away for now and to the decade’s end.  89

Midi

Château Du Donjon Grande Tradition Minervois 2009 (275578, $12.95) speaks directly of its mineral, Minervois roots. Brillat-Savarin might say this about the Donjon. “Tell me what you drink and I’ll tell you who you are.” The Châteauneuf-du-Pape aspiration of Kirsch with Daube is only deterred in the slightest by an aspersion of cherries steeped in quinine, but of a good kind. A “badger” of a red, fighting like Bernard Hinault and his two black eyes.  87

IVR* – Vintage Direct Intrigue-to-value ratio

CVR* – Vintage Direct Curiosity-to-value ratio

Good to go!