new find... (for me)
Reserve de L'Aube
vin de pays d'oc
Syrah - Merlot
Pere Anselme
2008
*France*
price: $7.00 :)
imported by Chateau Vegas Wines, Inc.
Las Vegas, NV 89118
fromvineyardsdirect.ie
very nice country wine, i assume as an experiment... from Languedoc Roussillon (south of France) blending merlot and syrah (great combination used in Australia). and the price.... superb!
i do not particularly prefer Merlot (on its own) which usually yields a soft wine... (once i had a bottle of ch. Petrus... i confess to be disappointed *forgot the year*) but when blended... nice job of mellowing sturdier grapes (such as cabernet sauvignot and in this instance, syrah). blend is syrah 65% - merlot 35%
i think Australians started blending Syrah and cabernet sauvignon, then syrah with merlot... and now they are doing it in the south of france... nice wine. (not 100% on this)
lots of fruit... blackcurrant - cherry... paired with hot italian sausage. once i suggested to a wine grower (of syrah), to market his wine by suggesting to pair it with slightly hot mexican food (not the fiery kind where you need beer, tequila, or a pair of scissors to cut off your tongue -g)
and the best of it (considering the price) it did not give me a headache, which means they did not overuse sulfites.... (that is my own barometer of quality connected to the amount of sulfites some winemakers tend use in order to 'industrialize' wine production).
at the time i was suspect of the recommendation (and price) after tasting it.... i will go back and buy MORE.
i will make a public mea culpa, in which i used to consider (long ago) australian winemakers, wine sacrilegeurs and in need to hire italian, french, or spanish chai's... because the early australian wine i had, tasted like chewed up grape vine leaves... (even worse than the very early non-blended american cabernets *that tasted like green grapes made by tennessee moonshiners*) understand: my wine upbringing at an early age, (12 years old), when my father started allowing me to taste wine from his cellar on special occasions (and it was not sangria, which i started at an even earlier age -g) all i knew it was fine bordeaux blends, a few superb bourgogne, and naturally, riojas of the highest quality (now, in my opinion, non-existent, since i have never been able to find that very peculiar earthy flavor from rioja anymore)... a yes, and a few italian wonderful wines.... (*)
i used to call australian wines, viking wine, the one drunk after pillaging a town, complete with ravaging women stealing candy from children, and overall murder of bankers, politicians, bishops, and bureaucrats... (just kidding)
well, i have been proven wrong over time... since both australian and american wine makers have surpassed by a lot... my wine tasting experiences and expectations. in fact, i keep learning about new regions where great wine is made... very good news to wine drinkers... i am not so sure these are good news to the courageous wine makers who have invested millions in their passion.... |
