Category Archives: France
Marsanne, Nobles Rives, Cave de Tain, Collines Rhodaniennes IGP, France, 12.5% abv, US$12
Marsanne, a grape from the northern Rhône, is usually blended with Roussanne and/or Viognier. Marsanne brings deep colour, nuts and spice, Roussanne offers floral tones, body and richness and Viognier, fruit. This wine is 100% Marsanne though and is from … Continue reading
Chardonnay, Pur Prisme, Guiborat Fils, Grand Cru, RM, Cramant, Champagne AC, France, 12.5% abv. US$45
This Champagne was created by Richard Fouquet, a 5th generation vigneron and récoltant manipulant (someone who grows his own grapes, makes his own wine and markets them under his own name) in Cramant. We visited Richard and his wife Karine … Continue reading
Cuvée Centenaire, Domaine Lafage, Côtes du Roussillon AOP, France, 2015, 13% abv. C$22++
Truth be told, I don’t want to tell you about this wine – because when I do, you’re going to run to the nearest liquor store and buy it out. And there won’t be any left for me. Unless I … Continue reading
Pinot Noir, La Forge de Tart, Premier Cru, Morey-Saint-Denis AC, Côte-d’Or, Bourgogne, France, 2007, 13.5% abv.
Sylvain Pithiot, the winemaker at this famous house, originally arrived in Burgundy as a map maker – he’s the person who created the incredibly detailed terroir maps of the Côte d’Or. It wasn’t until later that he decided to make … Continue reading
Grenache Blanc and Vermentino, Domaine Lafage, Côté Est, Côtes Catalanes IGP, France, 12.5% abv, C$18++
This delicious Grenache Blanc and Vermentino stunner is from the French part of Catalonia – grown on an organic vineyard facing est (east) toward the Mediterranean near Perpignan on the northern side of the Pyrénées. Got that map in your … Continue reading
Bordeaux, Château Malartic Lagravière, Grand Cru Classé, Graves, Pessac-Léognan AC, France, 2010, 14.5% abv, C$100
I often find the names of Bordeaux wineries to be, well, kind of unusual. This one is no exception. After a little digging, I learned it started off as Domaine de Lagravière and in the late 1700s was owned by … Continue reading
L’Amateur, David Léclapart, Blanc de Blancs, Pas Dosé, Premier Cru, Trépail, Marne, Champagne AC, France, 12.5% abv
Late blooming Pinot Meunier is the most frequently planted grape in the Marne, so the fact that David Léclapart has got Chardonnay growing in the frost prone village of Trépail is very interesting. That he is a fervent devotee of … Continue reading
GSM, Lafage, Tessellae, Old Vines, Côtes du Roussillon AC, France, 15% abv, 2013, C$23
There are so few really delicious wines available at the BCLB, that finding this one makes it a treasure at the end of that rainbow. And I’m always hunting for these – GSMs are my desert island wines. On the … Continue reading
Champagne, Perrier-Jouët, Brut, Belle Epoque, Epernay, Champagne AC, France, 2006, 12.5% abv.
Over two centuries, Perrier-Jouët has only had seven cellar masters. It was also the first House to create a dry Champagne in 1856. Then there are its famous art-nouveau bottles – and this one has been hand-painted. Since 1902 when … Continue reading
Les Bancèls, Domaine de Cébène, Faugères, France, 2013, 14% abv, C$29
What a lovely wine. Grown on classic slate terraces peppered with decades old organic vines at 320 m in southern France, this is a GSM you really must try. The Grenache and Syrah are grown on north and east facing … Continue reading
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