What: Cafe Presse Featured Wines for Fall 2011:
2010 Domaine Saint-Roch Touraine Sauvignon
2010 Maison l’Aiglon Saint-Chinian “Grand Reserve”
When: October, November and December 2011″
Where: To enjoy at Cafe Presse or to take out
Cafe Presse Wine Director Marcel Boulanger has selected two wines to feature this Fall that offer a great value and quality at the same time. Both are available on the wine list at Cafe Presse and also to take out so that you can enjoy them at home as well. All the wines on the Cafe Presse wine list are always available for take out at special low prices and we also offer a 10% discount on purchase of 6 or more bottles. Please call to check availability for larger orders.
These 2 lovely wines from the French countryside are the sort of wines that I like buy a dozen at a time, so that I can always have them around as my “House Wine”.
2009 Domaine Saint-Roch Touraine Sauvignon
$16.20/bottle when you purchase 6 or more bottles
These days, sauvignon blanc grapes are grown in many places around the globe. However, France’s Loire Valley is the spiritual home of Sauvignon Blanc based wines, boasting such famous Sauvignon Blanc appellations as Sancerre and Pouilly Fume. The “Touraine” is the name given to the area around the city of Tours, and it is an area reputed for producing wines of real quality that are also a real bargain. The 2009 Domaine Saint-Roch Touraine Sauvignon is 100% sauvignon blanc and it reflects all the legendary charm of the region: it is crisp and dry, with the mineral- flinty notes and bright acidity that Loire whites are famous for. As it opens in the glass, it also has floral and citrus fruit flavors that give it a real charm with food. Marcel recommends this wine with raw shellfish (“It will be fantastic with oysters”) but also thinks that it has the body to stand up to richer preparations, like mussels simmered with white vermouth, shallots, herbs and butter….sounds to me like Marcel has had a look at the Cafe Presse fall menu, which will features both these dishes beginning in mid-October.
2008 Maison l’Aiglon Saint-Chinian “Grand Reserve”
$11.70/bottle when you purchase 6 bottles or more
The vineyards of Saint-Chinian are located around the town of the same name in the Languedoc region on France’s Mediterranean coast. Maison l’Aiglon is located in the southern part of the appellation and the grapes for its “Grand Reserve” come from chalky slopes facing the sea. It is a warm environment with a long growing season, but the heat is tempered by the sea, so the granache and syrah grapes used to make this wine mature slowly. The result is a wine that is full bodied and long in the mouth without overpowering. Marcel says: “This wine will remind you of a Cotes-du-Rhone, but it is rounder, softer, featuring flavors of spice and red fruits. A very easy wine to enjoy.” He thinks it will pair very nicely with charcuterie and cured meats, like the air-cured Serrano ham or chicken liver terrine from the Cafe Presse menu, while also having the structure to pair well with the slow simmered stews of Fall.