Everyone needs a pantry wine -- something to open without too much consideration or care. Thirsty guests looking for something to wet their whistle? Pantry wine. Back home after a long weekend away, with no energy for anything but takeout pizza? Pantry wine. NBA Finals game go into overtime and you need just one more glass of something simple? You…
France’s Southern Rhône valley produces rich, smooth red blends. At one end of the spectrum there’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape, famous and long-lived; at the other there’s Côtes du Rhône, uncomplicated and inexpensive. Today’s wine is from the middle.
Nearly all of the domaines we work with here in France are family businesses. Some have been passed down for centuries, others feature three generations in business at once. As a family business ourselves, we love seeing the dynamics of small family enterprises play out on this side of the Atlantic.
Readers of these posts will know of our enthusiasm for the 2019 reds from Burgundy and the Northern Rhône Valley – a hot, dry growing season produced wines with excellent concentration and gorgeous fruit. Provided growers could manage to achieve balance through harvest timing and vineyard techniques, the wines are some of the most exciting we’ve tasted in years.
Mother Nature tends to be a bit friendlier to the winemakers of the Southern Rhône. There’s plenty of sun and warmth, the grape varietals are generally hardy, and the northwesterly Mistral wind keeps the grapes dry and maladies at bay. It’s still hard work, but lots of winemakers we know in Burgundy look longingly at the conditions to their south.
Some wines just hit a sweet spot between price and quality. All the way back to our brick and mortar days in Dupont Circle in Washington DC, the Goubert Sablet has been among the best sellers in our lineup. When we left it off our order last year, we had half a dozen customers write in to express concern.
The Domaine les Goubert is among the most consistent winemakers in our portfolio. No matter the vintage – warm or cool, sunny or wet, easy or difficult -- the Goubert wines are reliably outstanding. The winemakers allow the vintage to influence the character of the wine, but never the quality.
Compared with most regions in France, the Southern Rhône is an easy place to make wine. There’s plenty of sun and warmth, the grape varietals are generally hardy, and the northwesterly Mistral wind keeps the grapes dry and maladies at bay. It’s still hard work, for sure, but lots of winemakers we know in Burgundy look longingly at the conditions…
Some wines just hit a sweet spot between price and quality. All the way back to our brick and mortar days in Dupont Circle in Washington DC, the Goubert Sablet has been among the best sellers in our lineup. When we left it off our order last year, we had half a dozen customers write in to express concern.
We’re big fans of “pantry pasta.” You know the type -- al dente spaghetti, parmesan, garlic, olive oil, butter, and some combination of pepper flakes, anchovy, lemon, etc. Sometimes we love spending hours in the kitchen working on a multistep gustatory masterpiece -- other times, we make this.
The Domaine les Goubert is among the most consistent winemakers in our portfolio. No matter the vintage – warm or cool, sunny or wet, easy or difficult -- the Goubert wines are reliably outstanding. The winemakers allow the vintage to influence the character of the wine, but never the quality.
France’s Southern Rhône valley produces rich, smooth red blends. At one end of the spectrum there’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape, famous and long-lived; at the other there’s Côtes du Rhône, uncomplicated and inexpensive. Today’s wine is from the middle.
Some wines are esoteric -- subtly funky Burgundies; oxidative Jura whites; dessert wines made from moldy grapes, skin-contact orange wines, etc. Like a Rothko canvas or a Philip Glass composition, these wines are best understood with some context.
The Domaine les Goubert is among the most consistent winemakers in our portfolio. No matter the vintage – warm or cool, sunny or wet, easy or difficult -- the Goubert wines are reliably outstanding.
France’s Southern Rhône valley produces rich, smooth red blends. At one end of the spectrum there’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape, famous and long-lived; at the other there’s Côtes du Rhône, uncomplicated and inexpensive. Today’s wine is from the middle.