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French Wine
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Alsace
This region on the northern border of France, poised between French and German cultures for centuries, produces what are arguably the finest dry French wines. Hot summers and cool winters here produce incredibly aromatic Rieslings and Gewurztraminers. Idiosyncratic, fragrant sweet wines and sparkling wines are also produced. As luxurious and rare as any French wine, they are well worth the high prices they command..
Hugel Sélection de Grains Nobles Gewürztraminer Alsace   $210
Grapes: 100% Gewurztraminer Tasting Notes: Soft, juicy and seductive, coating the palate with a richly concentrated, harmonious and silky sensation. For those looking for an exceptional and rare wine experience. Honeyed with aromas of currant, papaya, mango, apricot, and with a touch of spice. Comment: Incredibly complex wine produced with botrytis affected grapes. These grapes are harvested one by one by hand and fermented in temperature controlled vats. Food Pairing: aperitif | rich cheeses | dessert | fruit tart When to Drink: Drink after 5 years, keep for up to 20 Service Temperature: 6°C | 44°F
 Lucien Albrecht Non-vintage Brut
Blanc de Blancs Sparkling Blend Crémant d'Alsace $20
Tasting Notes: Attractive sober color, flowery nose, fine and persistent head, very elegant and balanced mouth. Comment: Origin of the grapes: the vineyards on clay-chalky soil are all in the Orschwihr commune, a large vine-growing area in Southern Alsace which has an early micro climate. Food Pairing: aperitif | cocktail wine | appetizers When to Drink: Drink young, keep for up to 10 years Service Temperature: 7°C | 45°F
 Pierre Sparr Riesling Alsace $13
Tasting Notes: Vibrant floral aromas, lively acidity with a firm mineral background. The sensation is of ripe, mouthfilling fruit. Comment: From 14 year old vines and aged in stainless steel, this is a balanced, clean Riesling. Food Pairing: quiche | seafood | pork | sushi When to Drink: Drink young, keep for 2-3 years Service Temperature: 10°C | 50°F
 W. Gisselbrecht Riesling Alsace
$12
Grapes: 100% Riesling Tasting Notes: Fresh fruit notes, with hints of mint and currant. Comes along with a good acidity and minerality. Comment: This is a sense awakening wine. As a perfectly simple example of Alsatian Riesling this is a great value French wine. Food Pairing: seafood | pork | sushi When to Drink: Drink young, keep for 3-4 years Service Temperature: 12°C | 54°F
Jean-Baptiste Adam Sélection de Grains Nobles Gewürztraminer Alsace $90
Tasting Notes: Intense rich yellow color with complex aromas. Notes of peach, pineapple, and quince. Sweetish, but not overwhelmingly so. Comment: Pure nectar. Sipping this should be a religious experience, the wine is so rare. Food Pairing: aperitif | rich cheeses | dessert When to Drink: Drink after 5 years, keep for up to 15 Service Temperature: 6°C | 44°F
Loire WineSeveral distinct subregions make up the Loire Valley wine region in the Northwest of France. Within all of them however, the primary red grape variety is the Cabernet Franc. A sometimes idiosyncratic variety, in this area it tends to produce bright, fruity wines. Richly colored, sparkling roses are claimed also as a regional specialty. Only a slightly wider range of cultivars is used to make the region's whites. Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc are the most widespread varietals, and they compose everything from crisp, dry whites, to rich, sweet sparkling wines. But perhaps the most famous of the Loire whites is produced with the somewhat obscure Melon de Bourgogne. It is in Muscadet that this grape produces the minerally, ever so slightly carbonated dry white wine which is commonly thought of as the greatest companion to shellfish and oysters.
Tasting Notes: A mellow, sweet wine that delivers ripe fruit in glaze, fresh peach and apricot along with a taste of fig that may linger on your palate. This wine often reaches the summit of the region's sweet wines. Comment: Manually harvested in three successive passes to select only botrytised or overripe grapes. It is the sandy soil (broken sandstone rocks primarily) which is responsible for the quality of this wine: it warms up easily and gives the wine its elegant, feminine side. The slope also quickly drains after a fairly strong rainfall, which promotes maturation. Caveat: Do not pair with apples, orange, berries, or chocolate. Food Pairing: aperitif | dessert | poultry | liver | melon | crème anglaise | poached pears When to Drink: Wait at least 5 years after release, keep for up to 20 years Service Temperature: 7°C | 45°F
Domaine de l’Ecu Expression de Gneiss Melon Muscadet Sèvre Et Maine $20 
Tasting Notes: A combination of flinty minerality with creamy and lemony sensations on the palate, and pleasingly earthy aromas. Comment: This wine should go magnificently with all types of seafood and fish. Oysters on the half shell with a wedge of lemon is a classic match, and perfect. Food Pairing: aperitif | seafood | white meats When to Drink: Drink young, or keep for 5-7 years Service Temperature: 7°C | 44°F
Tasting Notes: Delicate tropical fruit aromas with a clean fruity and mineral palate. Crackling finish with floral notes and hints of lemon. Comment: From 35-45 year old vines on a sloping parcel of land composed of seashells and clay. The terroir produces a beautifully ripe crop for this wine, of which only the finest berries are hand picked and carefully delivered to the cellar. This wine is pressed on site and then allowed to mature on its lees, where is attains its richness and complexity before release. Food Pairing: aperitif | seafood | white meats When to Drink: Drink 3-5 years after release Service Temperature: 10°C | 49°F
Tasting Notes: Floral, delicate, tender, there is a lot of elegance in this wine of balance and finesse. Comment: The wine comes from a very gentle pressing of the grapes and fermentation in stainless steel tanks, lending to its minerality. Aging on its lees lends complexity. Food Pairing: aperitif | seafood | white meats | poultry | earthy risottos When to Drink: At its best 2 years after release, keep for up to 4 years Service Temperature: 12°C | 55°F
Rhone WineHere in the south of France white varieties have less acidity than in the north, due to the hotter weather. The most characterful are the grapey Muscat and the opulently fragrant Viognier of Condrieu. But the reds, characterized mainly by the powerful and earthy Chateauneuf du Pape are the real stars of the region. Sunny, ripe Grenache provides the backbone for these wines.
 Château de Beaucastel
Rhône Red Blend Châteauneuf-du- Pape $83
Tasting Notes: Very rich dark red, smells of ripe red fruit wearing a leather jacket and sprayed with musk. This goes along with some pepper, spice, and licorice. Comment: This chateau synonymous with Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Vines average an age of 50 years. Grenache and Cinsault give this wine an underlying softness, but without sacrificing intensity. Mourvedre and Syrah give this this wine a great body, while Counoise, Picpoul and the rest provide freshness and fragrance that is so characteristic of the region. Food Pairing: duck | hare | game | veal | rich cheese When to Drink: Wait at least 10 years after release, keep for 40+ years Service Temperature: 15°C | 60°F
Domaine de Nalys Rhône Red Blend Châteauneuf du-Pape  $35
Tasting Notes: Rich purple color with flicks of garnet. Aromas of small black berries, licorice, orange peel. Tastes of strong ripe red fruit, and Syrah adds its distinct peppery note. Comment: Aged in cement tanks and demi-muds. Uses all 13 of the allowed Chateauneuf-du-Pape grape varieties, which allows the winemakers to assure a nicely complex wine. Food Pairing: aperitif | rich cheeses | red meat| earthy entrees When to Drink: Drink after 3 years, keep for up to 10 Service Temperature: 15°C | 60°F
Domaine de la Mordorée La Dame Rousse Rosé Blend Tavel $29
Tasting Notes: With a limpid rose color, it delivers a dash of anise, accompanied by crystallized oranges and cherries. Comment: 40 year old vines on chalky limestone soil bring forth some concentrated fruit for this powerful wine. Food Pairing: deli meats | white meat | fried fish | pasta | pizza | asian dishes When to Drink: Drink young, keep for up to 4 years Service Temperature: 12°C | 53°F
ProvenceThe typically deep flavored, lush red wine of Bandol is the most serious wine produced in the southern French wine region of Provence. It can realistically be compared to Chateauneuf-du-Pape, in that it has the same sunripe fullness, although its backbone is provided mainly by the Mourvedre grape rather than Grenache. This is due to the fact that Provence is actually one of the few places in France where Mourvedre can be relied upon to reach its full maturity. But other of the dark skinned grape family are present too, such as Grenache and Cinsault, which produce herbaceous roses with the addition of Syrah and Carignan in the blend. By law all red wines must age at least 18 months in casks and hand-harvesting is required. A small amount of white wines are also produced here with the grape varietals Bourblenc, Clairette, and Ugni Blanc accompanied by no more than 40% Sauvignon Blanc. But stars in this category are relatively few to speak of.
  Domaine Tempier La Migoua Bandol
Rouge $36
Grapes: 50-60% Mourvedre and Cinsault Tasting Notes: Presents a complex array of aromas, with hints of raspberry, plum and spice. Has a noticeable mineral backbone that supports finely concentrated flavors. On the palate it has a long and creamy finish. Comment: This wine might be difficult to get your hands on, but the demand is well warranted. The quality to price ratio, along with its flavor profile, is suberb. Food Pairing: earthy entrees | grilled meats | truffles | When to Drink: Drink 5 years after release, keep for 10-15 years Service Temperature: 16°C | 61°F
 Domaine d'Eole Rosé Blend
Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence $15
Grapes: Mainly Cinsault with Grenache, Syrah, and Mouvedre Tasting Notes: Rose petal in color, with aromas of citrus and ripe red fruits, crisp acidity and a firm body. Comment: Made with organically grown fruit, this is an excellent everyday drinking wine for the summer. Food Pairing: picnic foods | bbq | salmon | chicken When to Drink: Drink young Service Temperature: 9°C | 50°F
Languedoc-RoussillonThe regions of Languedoc and Roussillon comprise what is effectively the breadbasket of French wine. But its relatively large wine output does not mean that quality is absent. Excellent AOC wines are produced, including the designated terriors of Banyuls and Risveltes which produce some of the most complex and long lasting of France's naturally sweet wines (vins doux naturelles). Wine quality in Banyuls can, and often does, reach a level worthy of the most world renowned French wines. The legal requirement that the best vineyards must age their wines at least 30 months before release is a testament to the quality that this southern French wine region can demand. But the region can also deliver great value for your dollar. Originating primarily from the Languedoc, many wines designated as Vins de Pays can be had at a very affordable price without a compromise in quality. These wines are widely available, and are often the best examples of French varietal wines (wines made from a single grape variety rather than a blend of grapes).
Grapes: 20% Chardonnay, 20% Viognier, 20% Petit Manseng, 20% Chenin Blanc, and the remaining 20% is made up of other grape varieties such as Valais and Arvine. Tasting Notes: Tropical fruit flavors with a tinge of a sherbet edge. Comment: 100% manually harvested from vines between 25-30 years old. Macerated with it skin for 5 to 7 days, and fermented in stainless steel tanks where it matures for 5 to 6 months. Food Pairing: earthy entrees | grilled meats | aperitif | rich cheeses When to Drink: Can be drunk very young (within 18 months of release) to experience its full minerality and complexity of aroma, along with the wine's freshness; After cellaring for 4 to 12 years the wine will become much more honeyed and rich, with the fruit flavors of its youth becoming even more concentrated. Service Temperature: 11°C | 52°F
  Domaine Famille Lignères Aric
Rhône Red Blend Corbières $20
Grapes: 60% Carignan, 25% Mourvedre, 15% Syrah Tasting Notes: Savory, moves through notes of cinnamon spice and plum with hints of anise and smoke along the way. Comment: Macerated and fermented over a period of 25 days in stainless steel tanks. Then it is barrel aged for 16 months with 50% new oak. Food Pairing: lamb | white beans | red meat | rich cheese | chocolate When to Drink: Drink between 3-10 years after release Service Temperature: 13°C | 55°F
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