Penya Cotes Catalanes Viognier 2017
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Jeb
Dunnuck
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Excellent on its own, with seafood (turbot, sole, or scallops) or spicy Asian cuisine.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Tasting like a mini-Condrieu, the 2017 Côtes Catalanes Viognier offers loads of orange blossom, white flowers, and citrus notes in a rounded, sexy, seamless style. It has terrific purity, no hard edges and a great finish. It's an incredible value. This cuvée is sourced from clay, limestone, and schist soils and spent four months on lees in cement tanks. It’s another remarkable value from importer Dan Kravitz.
Other Vintages
2018-
Jeb
Dunnuck
Full-figured and charmingly floral, Viognier is one of the most important white grapes of the northern Rhône where it is used both to produce single varietal wines and as an important blending grape. Look for great New World examples from California, Oregon, Washington and cooler parts of Australia. Somm Secret—Viognier plays a surprisingly important role in the red wines of Côte Rôtie in the northern Rhône. About 5% Viognier is typically co-fermented with the Syrah in order to stabilize the color, and as an added benefit, add a subtle perfume.
An extensive appellation producing a diverse selection of good quality and great values, Languedoc spans the Mediterranean coast from the Pyrenees mountains of Roussillon all the way to the Rhône Valley. Languedoc’s terrain is generally flat coastal plains, with a warm Mediterranean climate and frequent risk of drought.
Virtually every style of wine is made in this expansive region. Most dry wines are blends with varietal choice strongly influenced by the neighboring Rhône Valley. For reds and rosés, the primary grapes include Grenache, Syrah, Carignan, Cinsault and Mourvèdre. White varieties include Grenache Blanc, Muscat, Ugni Blanc, Vermentino, Macabéo, Clairette, Piquepoul and Bourbelenc.
International varieties are also planted in large numbers here, in particular Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
The key region for sparkling wines here is Limoux, where Blanquette de Limoux is believed to have been the first sparkling wine made in France, even before Champagne. Crémant de Limoux is produced in a more modern style.