2009 Domaine des Sénéchaux Châteauneuf-du-Pape

This CdP of Southern Rhone France opened with a nice aroma of cherries and spice. We found that its flavors mirrored the nose and also displayed a heavy vegetal component and a hint of licorice. The spicy red fruit was nice, but found the green pepper was a bit overwhelming. There was a little bit of heat (alcohol) on the back end, which wore off after we let it breathe. We felt the acidity was lacking making for a slightly flat wine. The mouth feel was great--medium to full in body with well balanced tannin. We expect a bit more complexity out of a Chat du Pape at this price, but it could very well be that it needs more time in the bottle. It will develop as years pass, so hold on drinking for now.

Body: medium to full
Approx. Cost: $35 Buy it here! 
Food Pairing: Grilled or Roasted Pork

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2003 Chateau Tour de Guiet - Cotes de Bourg

Heavy flowers on the nose--take a huge whiff in the glass and it's like sticking your nose into a bouquet of flowers! We taste a lot of interesting flavors in this Bordeaux! Rose petals, permanent markers, plums, moss and driftwood dominate the flavor. Its medium body is soaked in fine tannins!

This is a really great approachable QPR from Bordeaux, where you'll rarely get decent wines for $12. The crowd loved it, which makes it an even better value. We're torn between a rating of 4 and 5 glasses; it's up to you to decide! Cheers! Top Pick!

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2008 Louis Jadot Beaujolais-Villages

Off to a rocky start discovering France... This medium-bodied wine has some nice floral and herbal notes on the nose. Mouth feel is very thin, but tight tannins hold it together pretty well. There's a longer finish than most medium body wines, with huge cherry, raspberry, and cranberry flavors! A mild underlying earthy tone is present, too.

This is a tough call... It lacks the balance of an exceptional, or even good wine. There's some heat that lingers on the nose and on the finish, that I can't get passed. For $13, I'd pass, but don't let that stop you. Its an OK wine with some intriguing fruit components!

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2005 La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux

As we're starting to venture out into more French wines, we're learning a lot more about them. We're always so intimidated by the labels, but a quick lesson on French wine labels will do the trick! On the nose, we got some really nice earth and raspberry aromas--very intriguing!! After tasting, we found this medium bodied red to have KILLER tannins, a touch of herbs, a floral component, earthiness, and raspberries or cherries. The finish was a bit short, but possibly because of its lighter body. From what we found after researching a bit (it was a gift), this wine is UNDER $10! It wasn't layered with super complex flavors, but that's a great buy for such an interesting wine.

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2008 Chateau Pesquie Ventoux Terrasses

So, I had high hopes for this wine since past vintages have been good. While it lacks a few things, it still keeps me interested. This Rhone blend is 70% grenache and 30% syrah.

At first sight, it is VERY vibrant in color! There is a boatload of intriguing aromas pouring out of the glass: earth, black fruits, a nice vegetal component, but with some heat, which takes away from it all.

It is really hard to pinpoint this wine when tasting, as it seems too unbalanced to pull all the pieces together. It lacks depth, and the alcohol is a little distracting. What is interesting, though, is its nice earth flavors, blackberries, and balanced tannins and acidity.

A couple more years of aging may aid in rounding out this wine a bit. We'll see... Grab a bottle of this. It's only $10, so you don't have much to lose. I'd like to know what your thoughts are! Pair it with some grilled pork chops if you have the chance!

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2005 Rhone Rebel Cotes du Ventoux GSM

Got this from Wine Library when they were shipping to RI--no longer :( . It was under $10, and got a rave review from Gary V. It was a pretty good, well balanced wine! Medium-light bodied, ripe berries, good tannins. Not sure of the case production on this, but be on the lookout in case you pass over it! Great QPR, and a definite crowd-pleaser!

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