Fall is in the air, and French wines are filling our glasses. So grab your beret and come taste some terroir of the Loire, Provence and the Côtes-du-Rhône.
2018 Patient Cottat, Le Grande Caillou $12
Sauvignon Blanc
The Fournier family have been farming and producing wines in Sancerre for generations. Le Grande Caillou “the big rock” doesn’t make the cut to be labeled Sancerre, but at this price we won’t quibble. Clean, bright and refreshing, this is a perfect Loire Sauvignon Blanc for all occasions.
2018 Miraval, Rosé $20
Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah, Rolle
Owned by the Jollie Pit “family” but made by a real life Provencal wine maker, the Miraval rosé is a wonderful blend of fruits aromas and freshness, made on an exceptional terroir in Provence. Special Fall price.
2017 Famille Perrin, Nature Organic Red $13
Grencahe, Syrah
Certified organic, Perrin Nature is not only an organic Côtes-du-Rhône but also good wine. Using their experience in organic farming at Beaucastel (one of the first big estates to turn to organic farming 40 years ago), this wine is a beautiful expression of fruit with delicate and soft tannins. Rich in the mouth, it offers a nice complexity with aromas of spices, garrigue, blackcurrant and white pepper.
2016 Famile Perrin, Vinsobres Les Cornuds $20
50% Grenache, 50% Syrah
Vinsobres, a beautiful village located north of Châteauneuf du Pape is cultivated primarily on terraces particularly suitable for Syrah. It develops notes of violet, smoked meat and blackberries. The Grenache is also suited to this terroir, full bodied and not heavy, with notes of black chocolate, cherry and typical Garrigue aromas. Well balanced and complex in the mouth, it offers a nice acidity, freshness and a hint of bitterness reminiscent of limestone.
2016 Domaine Les Adrets, Bandol Rouge $21
95% Mourvèdre, 5% Carignan
Les Adrets means “Sunny Side” in French and in practical use refers to a slope soaked by the sunshine. The vineyards that produce Les Adrets sit upon hillsides facing south east, steep enough to require the growers to plant the vines in stone wall terraces called “restanques”. The grapes are from younger vines planted in the five diverse Bandol soil types: rudist limestone, Triassac pebbles, black marl, sandy marl, and red sand. The wine is unmistakably rich, almost burly with deep, ripe fruit and playful, peppery spice.
Madrona Wine Merchants offers free wine tastings featuring 4-5 selections on a theme every Saturday from 2 until the bottles run out and on Sunday, we offer a mini-tasting of two wines all day from 11-5.