Thursday, April 30, 2009

Two bargains from Southern France

My stash of Rhone wines seems to be growing quite large lately as the 2007 vintage begins to make its way onto the local shelves. These are still mainly the everyday wines, not for the cellar, though I am finding a lot of them need a little time still. My latest selection was the 2007 Domaine de la Janasse Cotes du Rhone. It was just recently that I had a bottle of the 2006, which still seemed a little young. The 2007 actually wasn't much different upon initial tasting. It also had a bit of heat, but was actually better than a couple of other 07s I've had recently. On the second night, the wine really seemed to be coming together with the fruit coming forward more and the wine more in balance. Overall, it's still a little simple and has some room for growth, but I think it will be pretty good in another few months.

The next wine I had was actually not a 2007, nor was it from the Rhone, but actually a Vin de Pays. However, it was made by one of the stars of the southern Rhone, Laurence Feraud of Pegau. The 2006 Pegovino is a Syrah/Grenache blend, and it will stand up to most any Cotes du Rhone. The wine was nicely balanced, with plenty of fruit. It's also quite a bargain (I think about $11), and may be easily overlooked by people that don't recognize it. I advise anyone who likes a good southern Rhone to be on the lookout for this wine, as it is quite good, especially for the price.

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