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French wines to transition from summer to fall.
The Polo Grill’s cheese plate and Domaine de Salvard Sauvignon Blanc.
There’s no doubt about it: Fine wine makes you want to frolic. There’s no better place to frolic than France in the fall after the summer tourist season ends.
What to drink? France is the leading wine producer in Europe, and there are lots of delicious wines from which to choose.
Let’s look at three styles of wine that are perfect as we transition away from summer wines and begin our fall frolic.
Pouilly Fume is Sauvignon Blanc at its finest. Coming from the central vineyards of the Loire Valley, west of Paris, Pouilly Fume is similar to Sancerre but grown in soils with more clay and flint over Kimmeridgian limestone.
This Sauvignon Blanc has more of a smoky, gunflint characteristic, is less herbaceous than Sancerre and is cask-aged more often.
Needless to say, the wines of Pouilly Fume are sturdy for white wines and laced with a lovely stony minerality that our California and New Zealand Sauv Blancs sometimes lack.
If you love Sauvignon Blanc and have never tried a Pouilly Fume or Sancerre, you’re missing out on a little treasure that is perfect this fall with seafood — particularly mussels, clams and oysters.
The next ideal fall French wine is a dry rosé. I call this a red wine dressed in bloomers. If I had to pick only one wine to sip in the fall, it would be rosé. Rosés can be single-varietal but are normally blends of several grapes.
Our feature rosé from Corbieres in the south of France is a blend of Grenache gris, Grenache noir, Mourvedre, Cinsault and Carignan. When you think of Mediterranean food such as fresh grilled fish with rosemary and olives or sweet grilled lamb chops, you should opt for a dry rosé. It isn’t too heavy, it isn’t too light and it is the most extraordinary transitional wine as we slip from summer to fall.
Finally, the southern Rhone Valley has another mind-blowing wine — Chateauneuf du Pape rouge, blended with 13 different red and white grapes. It has flavors of red and black fruit, such as ripe strawberries, bing cherries, black cherries and raspberries. The variety is a little spicy, with black pepper creeping onto your palate. Normally, because of lots of sunshine in this area, this wine has a higher percentage of alcohol. The year 2007 was terrific in the Pape with a Robert Parker rating of 98, tying with 2000 and 1998 as the best years ever for wines here.
Sips around town
The Brasserie Restaurant and Bar
General Manager Kristen Villareal says one of her favorite early-fall bridge wines is the refreshing Chateau de Trinquevedal Rosé from Tavel, France. Lively strawberry flavors make this a terrific wine to enjoy any time. It is $7 a glass and $35 a bottle.
3509 S. Peoria Ave., 779-7070
The Polo Grill
Daytime bartender Regina Dunlap loves to recommend the popular Domaine de Salvard Sauvignon Blanc from Cheverny, Loire, France, at $9 a glass and $37 a bottle. “It’s perfect with our cheese plate and also a great aperitif wine,” she says.
2038 Utica Square, 744-4280
Sips at home
Pass the Pouilly, Louie
Regis Minet Pouilly Fume 2008, Loire, France — $21.99
One of France’s most beloved Sauvignon Blancs. It is delightful on the nose with gorgeous aromas wafting out of the glass — ruby-red grapefruit, lemon candy and freshly cut grass. Your tastebuds will kick into gear with the high acidity and stony mineral flavors. Bring on the mussels cooked in white wine and garlic.
Beats the rose in your garden any day
Domaine de Fontsainte Gris de Gris Rosé 2008 — $14.49
Think juicy red fruit — such as strawberries, raspberries, red currants and cranberries — all thrown together in a glass. This is a dry rosé, heavier than white wine, lighter than Pinot Noir. It’s a perfect food partner with smoked chicken, ham, pork ribs, pepperoni pizza, salmon, duck, lamb chops — the suggestions are endless. When you’re having a tough time deciding between white and red wine, opt for rosé. It’s very chic to drink.
Pop this Pape — and fast!
Telegramme Chateauneuf du Pape 2007, Southern Rhone, France — $39.99
In Chateauneuf du Pape, 2007 was a blockbuster year, and you’ll want to get your hands on a few bottles. These wines can age eight to 10 years, sometimes more. This blend is dominantly Grenache, which delivers loads of red and blackberry fruit — grown on vines with an average 25 years of age. The wine is complex with layers of fruit flavors, black pepper notes, bacon fat and a very long finish. It’s been seven years since Chateauneuf du Pape had a vintage this phenomenal.
