french wine a day

Pic Saint Loup

Dear wine lovers,

Like Mount Sainte Victoire near Aix-en-Provence, Mount Les Baux near Saint Remy de Provence, Pic Saint Loup* near Montpellier is a very distintive Mount in the south of France Download mount_pic_saint_loup.jpg

These three true pieces of art have been celebrated by great painters such as Paul Cézanne, Vincent Van Gogh and Raoul Lambert.

Another analogy is the white limestone rock standing up like a giant, leaving around it slopes of rocky soil. Eventually, raising grapes there was logical and first the Romans, then the monks, chose this place because of its potential quality.

Grenache, Syrah and Carignan are the most common grape varieties used here and it is also very common to age these wines in used barrels.

The wines are mainly full bodied in style but with a nice acidity since we are here in the highest part of Languedoc, Northeast of Montpellier.

Cranberry and violet flavours evolve to liquorice** and eventually dry meat or smoke aromas, especially if Syrah is predominant.

You might find a nice alliance with meat marinated with soja sauce and cooked on the barbeque, then continue the wine with cheeses and even desert (if you are drinking a younger vintage).

Château de Cazeneuve and Domaine de l’Hortus are among the most famous but if you travel in the area http://www.pic-saint-loup.com/domindex.html, you can try any of then, I have personally never been disappointed with these wines.

Cheers,

Jean-Marc Espinasse

Any comments, edits are very welcome at contact@french-wine-a-day.com

*Listen to "Pic Saint Loup" : Download pic_saint_loup.wav

**liquorice = réglisse

To see Pic Saint Loup on a French wine map (NB : enlarge it when open) : Download pic_saint_loup.jpg

Chateauneuf du Pape white

Dear wine lovers,

I have always believed there are very few areas where, in the same terroir*, it is possible to produce both a great red and white wine. The reason is that it is not easy to find the right grapes that will fit the soil, climate, and have the same exposure/orientation… which are the most important components of this very French word (terroir) that has actually no English translation.

Chateauneuf du Pape is one of these areas where the exception confirms the rule.

One of the reasons is that the dome that reflects this area has a four slopes orientation and a lot of special characteristics--like those round ”galets” or pebbles offered up a long time ago by the Rhône river, and which used to cover the area, and the current Rhône river influence. Also, since Chateauneuf du Pape is a little and unique village, ancestral traditions and know-how are kept secrets and only given from generations to generations.

Roussane, Grenache white and Clairette are the 3 main grapes with Bourboulenc and Muscardin that enter in this very fine wine. The tasting often shows very delicate flavours like white flowers such as jasmine or acacia and honey**. As an outstanding wine, it is endless and very "fat."

One of the best food/wine "marriages" I have experienced is a Clos des Papes 1990 with some “summer truffle scramble eggs” that the famous and very humble Chef Guy Julien from la Beaugravière (where you will find one of the best wine Rhône list) http://beaugraviere.com/index-gb.htm) cooked in July 2000.

Since 10% of Chateauneuf du Pape's tiny production is white, it is not easy to find. Fairly priced bottle are Château Montredon or Domaine de Nalys. Otherwise, and if you are ready to pay the price, you can always try Château Rayas or Château de Beaucastel.

Cheers,

Jean-Marc Espinasse

Any comments, edits are very welcome at contact@french-wine-a-day.com

*Listen to "terroir" : Download Terroir.wav

**honey = miel

To see Chateauneuf du Pape on a French wine map (NB : enlarge it when open) : Download chateauneuf_du_pape.jpg