Winemaker Notes
Well-suited to pastas, pizza, BBQ or anything eaten en-route as you search for long-lost knowledge.
These Pinot Noir grapes were discovered in two ideal regions of France, Puy de Dôme and Méditerranée. Both feature vines 15-40 years old in high-altitude vineyard sites near the 45th parallel. Hot days and cold nights bestow delicacy and finesse, as in Burgundy. Master Blender Jean-Pierre Rodet rejected hundreds of lots to find the perfect grapes to craft this luscious Pinot Noir.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Produced by a tenth-generation family winery with grapes from the Puy de Dome and Mediterranee regions. Bright and fresh with notes of cherry and savory spice; clean and vigorous.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
A small category representing the wines that either fall outside of appellation lines or don’t subscribe to the law and traditions set forth by the French government within certain classified appellations, “Vin De France” is a catch-all that includes some of the most basic French wines as well as those of superior quality. The category includes large production, value-driven wines. It also includes some that were made with a great deal of creativity, diligence and talent by those who desire to make wine outside of governmental restrictions. These used to be called Vin de Table (table wine) but were renamed to compete with other European countries' wines of similar quality.