Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Happy . . .um . . . Second Week of the New Year! That seems a bit anticlimactic, doesn’t it? I guess for the second week we just settle into the old routines again and try not to look at the post-holiday credit card bills. On the good side, the crowds at the gym start to diminish after the first week of the year, so there’s less fighting to get on that stairclimber. Ah, resolutions. As to my resolution: I resolve to keep serving the best wines possible at the price with emphasis on the “Hey, that’s neat!” and the “This is a what? Hey, that’s good!” genres of wines. And to show that some resolutions can be kept, here’s the Carpe Vinum Second Week of January Newsletter and Tasting Announcement For Which It Exists! And this week, it’s the wines of Southwest France!

“The wines of Southwest France” seems to be a vague title. And rightfully so, as the regions that are contained within that designation are scattered about with no seeming semblance of order. They are country wines, and are as diverse, and therefore as interesting, as any others I’ve encountered. There are styles in the region that are unmatched and some native grapes that are seldom, if ever, planted elsewhere. But what makes them all “Southwest”? Well . . . that’s, uh . . .where they are located within France: The Southwest. It’s just the vast area of territory between the Southern and Eastern edges of Bordeaux, and the Northern and Westernmost reaches of Languedoc and Rousillon, and continuing all the way down to the Basque country in the Pyrenees, way far South. There are about two-dozen individual grower regions within the Southwest and, frankly, they are a bit hard to track down, here in town. Also, and as a result of these wines being so obscure, there are a great many bargains to be found in the region. So of these two-or-so-dozen wine districts, we’ve got seven.

We’re starting with the Cotes de Marmandais, which is directly bordering Bordeaux. As a result, as you might expect, the wines are in the same style as Bordeaux, being Cabernet, Merlot and Cabernet Franc blends. Further to the East of Marmandais we find one of the more famous wine districts of Cahors. Traditionally the wines were all inky-black and made from all Malbec. After the phylloxera epidemic wiped out most of the vineyards, and the Malbec had a hard time grafting onto phylloxera-resistant rootstock, the region saw more Merlot and Tannat grapes mixed into the blend. But the wines of Cahors must be at least 70% Malbec, and are still dark, dark wines.

South of Cahors we find the regions Gaillac, Frontonnais, Madiran, and Irouleguy. All feature a multitude of grape varieties that we know well, and others we’ve probably never heard of. Of a specific note is the superstar of this part of the region: The Tannat grape which dominates the Madiran and Irouleguy wines. The wines made from Tannat are burly, tannic, and spicy. I’ve been enjoying these wines quite a bit, and this region of the world is one of the only places to get it. I guess they’ve experimented with a bit of Tannat in the New World, but I’ve never seen any of them around here. It’s just stuff of legends and fairy-tales to keep the young eonophiles in check.

Oh, but that’s not all! While searching for new and interesting wines for the tasting, I came across one I’ve never seen before, and I was perplexed. No . . . not perplexed . . . um . . . piqued interest? Intrigued! Something like that . . . It caught my attention. It’s a sweet white wine from within the Madiran region called Pacherenc du Vic-Bihl Doux, if you can believe such a thing. It’s a late-harvest wine made with Arrufiac, Courbu, Petit Manseng, Gros Manseng with bits of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. I guess you didn’t really need to know all those grapes unless you were going to try to make one yourself . . . which, and of course, let me know if you do. That would be just too weird to pass up!

So Friday, January 12th, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Southwest France!!!
Chateau de Fontalem 2004 Cotes de Marmandais
Chateau de Cedre 2004 Heritage, Cahors
Bellevue la Foret Optimum, Cotes du Frontonnais
Domaine des Terrisses 2004 Rouge, Gaillac
Chateau Lafitte-Teston 2003 Vielles Vignes, Madiran

More Wines Southwest France!!!
Chateau Montus 2002 Madiran
Domaine Brana 2003 Rouge, Irouleguy

And, yes! It’s Another Triumphant Return of the Satellite Dessert Pour!!!
Domaine Brumont 2001 Pacherenc du Vic Bihl Doux

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours, and $4 for the dessert pour.
Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Awesome Aussies!

M