Wineblog Wednesday #16
‘You look fabulous baby’

We buy wine for any number of reasons and usually it is NOT because we have tasted it before. Price, region, critical acclaim, etc, are all worthy motivators so why not beauty (it is often the first reason we choose our companions so why not our wine). My entry is from a little known region and from an unknown producer (it was their first bottling), but there was ‘something about the way ….’

Côtes de Duras 2000, Les Apprentis, Domaine Mouthes le Bihan ($30...importation)
Sandwiched between the Marmandais and Bergerac in France’s south west region, the Duras is very much an extension of Bordeaux in both grapes and style. A blend of Merlot, two Cabs and Malbec, it combined the elegant restraint of Bordeaux with the ripeness and rusticity characteristic of the south. At almost 6 years, the first taste was still massively tannic, however an hour in carafe was enough to smooth it right out. Rich, long and exploding with dark fruit and black licorice, it is still not for the faint of palette, but with duck or a piece of deer, it is heaven.

And of course, Bihan is organic in the vineyard and restrained in the chais (indigenous yeasts, little new wood, no filtration or collage). Just how we like it...baby.

Thanks to derrick and his most sexy food blog obsession with food for hosting this edition of wbw.