Thursday, August 16, 2007

Southwest France Revisited

Definitely not trying to steal Joe's thunder here, not that I could anyway. But after discovering this little lovely from Domaine des Cassagnoles for $10, I had to keep going, to taste more white wine from Southwest France. I like everything about these Southwestern whites so far. I like their vibrant citrus and exotic fruit flavors, their food friendliness, their light texture - perfect for summer, and I definitely like their price point at about $10. I also like the names of the grapes - they sound like French detectives. Have no fear, Detective Colombard is on the case. Or, careful buddy, better wipe away those prints or Gros Manseng will catch you.

I tried and so far failed to find wines by Domaine de Pellehaut as suggested by reader Steve L. who had this to say about them:
At the end of last year I was blind served a glass of Domaine de Pellehaut white and did a triple take. Man, I said to myself, I'd like more of this, figuring it'd cost about $20 a bottle. Well, it was more like $7 so I bought some, I told my family to buy some, etc. The 2005 is all gone I'm sure but the 2006 is starting to appear.
Joe also tasted the 05 Pellehaut and clearly enjoyed it. Marcus has a Southwest recommendation too, but I haven't seen that wine either so far. I did, however, notice a stack of $8 white wine at Chambers Street recently, and much to my delight, it was Southwest white. Here are my notes:

2006 Domaine Duffour Vins de Pays des Cotes de Gascone, $8 (Chambers Street Wines). Screwcap, which is fine by me, and a nice low 12% alcohol level. Strong cat pee smells upon pouring, but they relax a bit and blend with the grass and citrus aromas. The cat pee never entirely leaves though, and this is not something that I particularly care for. Yeah, I know that it's normal in many whites, expecially Sauvignon Blanc, but that doesn't mean I have to like it, pal. Pleasant light texure with clean citrus and rainwater flavors.

This wine is certainly pleasant, but it does not measure up to the Domaine des Cassagnoles. The Duffour began to fade about a half hour after opening, and never really had the depth and complexity of the Cassagnoles, which by the way was twice as good with 24 hours of airtime. You have to spend a full 25% more for the Cassagnoles, which in this case is 2 United States Dollars, and I recommend that you spend it.

9 comments:

Marcus said...

Nice!

Love the linking action and the thunderous Joe has been rather quiet this week (I'm actually out-posting him) so keep 'em coming in the meantime!

Sonadora said...

I think Joe's on an American wine month anyway, so no thunder stealing this month!

Brooklynguy said...

Thanks Dok. Hi Sona, good to see you. Joe is probably detained by border guards for attempting to smuggle loads of wine into Canada...

Marcus said...

Sona... You are right! So observant.

I just read that there is definitely no stealing Joe's thunder this month... A Santa Barbara area newspaper gave big props to him and his blog. Check it out. I think he certainly deserves it, even without an American wine month! I knew it was only a matter of time until the world got hold of him.

Joe said...

Hey, did I hear somebody talking about me?
Outposting me, eh?! I have a stack of tasting notes so thick I'm thinking of hiring a summer student! In all seriousness, my final SW France post will include multiple wines from virtually every appelation. It is work in progress, typing away between Yanqui treasures. As for the border guards, none of you Yanks answered my riddle from the beginning of the month (Where is Joe really from?). I hold two passports, you know...
Cheers!

Marcus said...

Hire me!

Anonymous said...

Hey Neil -

Did you ever think about nixing label images for wines that you're not wild about? That way, when the scanner checks out your blog in a hurry (not that I do such a thing!), he or she would tend to remember on the wines that you are wild about?

Cheers,

Tyler

Brooklynguy said...

if you hire him Joe, i should probably get %18 of his salary for the first year because i host the site that connected you.

another good idea, thank you Doc V. Why DO i show labels for wines that i am not whole heartedle recommending, anyway?

Joe said...

both good ideas. Your cheque for $0.18 is in the mail...enjoy your trip!