Wine

December 10, 2014 12

RAW AND ROLLE

Oysters are everywhere in Provence this time of year. Often likened to the American turkey at Thanksgiving, oysters—along with foie gras and caviar—are an integral part of the holidays in France. Half of the country’s annual production of oysters is consumed between [...]

December 6, 2014 0

Stephen Cronk Feeling Sanguine about 2014 Mirabeau Rosés

This morning I spoke with Stephen Cronk, proprietor of Mirabeau in Provence, who told me that he and winemaker Jo Ahearne just wrapped up the final blending session of the Mirabeau 2014 rosés. Woo-hoo! [...]

November 16, 2014 9

LE CLOS DE CAVEAU: PIONEER IN ORGANIC VITICULTURE IN SOUTHERN RHONE VALLEY

“Is there alcohol in that [wine]?” was a common question when Gérard Bungener, Henri’s father, first adopted organic practices in his Vacqueyras vineyard. Now, twenty-five years later, it is hard to fathom such a question. [...]

November 5, 2014 0

Out Out Damn Rosé

Red wine grabbed the spotlight from their much-lauded rosés at Château Léoube's recent portes ouvertes on the Cap Bénat peninsula in Bormes-les-Mimosas. The star of the show was the first official vintage of Léoube Collector, a single varietal Cabernet Franc, a first of its kind [...]

November 2, 2014 22

MY DINNER WITH SACHA LICHINE

When the invitation for dinner with Sacha Lichine popped up on my screen, I couldn’t help but think of my grandfather.

Just above my desk, wedged into the middle of a crowded shelf, stands a faded purple book entitled “Wines of France.” The book belonged to my grandfather and the author was Alexis Lichine, Sacha’s father, otherwise known as “the Pope of Wine.” [...]

October 23, 2014 1

Mon Dieu! How Much was that 20-Year-Old Rosé?

ried in the middle of an otherwise humdrum article in Wine Spectator about the “Auction Index [Staying] Flat in Third Quarter of 2014,” was the following sentence: “A two-bottle lot of Henri Jayer Bourgogne Rosé 1994 climbed above its $180 estimate by [...]

October 20, 2014 3

CHÂTEAU LA VERRERIE: THE HOUSE OF RED

Set in the southern-most tip of the Rhone Valley Region, in the Luberon Appellation—where rosé is now the dominant color—Château La Verrerie is renowned for its fresh, dark fruit-forward, peppery red wines. On this property, 70% of production is devoted to red wine [...]

October 4, 2014 9

WITH RECORD-BREAKING EXPORTS OF PROVENCE ROSÉS TO THE U.S., MARCEL OTT COMES TO MIND

When I read the news earlier this month about the continued dramatic growth of exports of Provence rosé to the United States, I couldn't help but think of Marcel Ott, the brilliant founder of Domaines Ott*.

The widely circulated news - lest you have been locked in your wine cellar - is that Provence rosé exports to the US increased 20% on volume and 26% on value from May 2013 to May 2014 (based on data from the French customs agency). [...]

September 22, 2014 7

CHÂTEAU MARGÜI:
FROM PRIME D’ARRACHAGE
TO STELLAR BIODYNAMIC WINE

Vineyards covered the land around what is now Château Margüi for as many as two thousand years…until, sometime in the 1970s, when the vines were pulled up –“grubbed up,” as it’s often called—and “sold” to the French government as part of a plan—referred to as “prime d’arrachage”—to control the amount of wine produced in the country. [...]

September 14, 2014 6

PIERREFEU RELEASES ITS FIRST VINTAGE

Last month, Château Montaud quietly released their first rosé under the new label “AOP Côtes de Provence Pierrefeu.” Although Pierrefeu was officially recognized as a denomination de terroir (sometimes referred to as a sub-appellation) in March 2013, efforts toward this goal began way back in August 2003. This summer, 11 years after a small association of winemakers was formed to create [...]

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