good affordable Cotes du Rhone

B

Bill Averett

Bill Averett
Before I write about the wine, I just watched one of the new Bud Light commercials in between innings. I guess their new marketing approach is "drinkability." Water is very drinkable, so I guess describing Bud Light as drinkable, gives it an air of necessity. Does drinkable imply that you will want to keep drinking? As in encouraging binge drinking.

Despite all of the problems that I have with this new ad campaign, I find Olivier Cuilleras' wines from Domaine La Guintrandy to be very drinkable. And I mean it as a good thing, maybe because they are so affordable.

Cotes du Rhone Blanc 2007- Honeyed nose and hints of orange marmalade, and strangely behind the fruit there is an herbal component- oregano almost; tastes of dried apricot and peach, with a finish long enough to remind you how good it tastes. retails at about $12

Vin de Pays Comte de Grignan 2006- earthy and berried fruit aromas; red plum, medium body, and very drinkable. retails for under $10

Cotes du Rhone Vieilles Vignes 2006- earth and pepper on the nose, with brambly fruits; tastes of black fruits- currant, blackberry, and a silky quality. Oh, so very drinkable. Decant. retails for around $12

Cotes du Rhone Visan Vieilles Vignes 2006- complex nose of mushrooms, dark fruits, and spices- rich, textured layers unfold. Decant. unbelivable steal of a wine for about $20 retail.

Does anyone else have a producer that they can readily find that they have always kept a tight lip on revealing.
 
I don't know about readily available, but lately I am loving:

Domaine Monpertuis
Gres St Vincent
Eric Texier (his 06 CdR is IMO his best effort to date with this wine)

As for more readily available, try the Jaboulet Ventoux Isnard. It is cheap, made is mass quantities, and about the only Jaboulet wine I care about anymore.
 
Bressey-Masson 'Rasteau" CDRV 2006. I'm not sure if it's nationally distributed, but I see it around Oregon a fair bit. Nice balance of fruit and structure, pairs well with chicken AND steaks. $15 to $18 depending on the markup.

I've also tasted a few examples from 2007 (though my alcohol-addled brain cannot remember which producers) and everything seemed tasty. Hopefully the exchange rate will hold long enough to get this into the US markets.
 
Though hardly a secret, my go-to source for good, cheap Ctes du Rhne is Bernard Latour of Domaine de L'Espigouette in Vacqueyras. Their CdR VV bottling, brought into our area by J et R, is a constant winner and a bottle of their '04 Plan de Dieu consumed over the weekend was just fine, too, if a bit pricier than the $12 I can get the VV for.

Mark Lipton
 
originally posted by MLipton:
Though hardly a secret, my go-to source for good, cheap Ctes du Rhne is Bernard Latour of Domaine de L'Espigouette in Vacqueyras. Their CdR VV bottling, brought into our area by J et R, is a constant winner and a bottle of their '04 Plan de Dieu consumed over the weekend was just fine, too, if a bit pricier than the $12 I can get the VV for.

Mark Lipton
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L'Espigouette is not in Vacqueyras, though they do make a Vacqueyras. They abide in Violes.
 
originally posted by Jonathan Loesberg:

L'Espigouette is not in Vacqueyras, though they do make a Vacqueyras. They abide in Violes.
Click to expand...

Argh. You've pointed this out to me before. Sorry for being so dense, Prof.

Mark Lipton
 
originally posted by MLipton:
originally posted by Jonathan Loesberg:

L'Espigouette is not in Vacqueyras, though they do make a Vacqueyras. They abide in Violes.
Click to expand...

Argh. You've pointed this out to me before. Sorry for being so dense, Prof.

Mark Lipton
Click to expand...

Yes, I shouldn't nag, but having a neighboring winemaker transplanted is a sore point.
 
originally posted by Jonathan Loesberg:

Yes, I shouldn't nag, but having a neighboring winemaker transplanted is a sore point.
Click to expand...

On this topic, now that I've had their Plan de Dieu, I find myself wondering about the differences in character. I have some of the '04 CdR VV for comparison purposes, but my recollection is of a wine of slightly greater depth and character. I presume that the vineyards for this wine are close to Viols and outside of the Vacqueyras (and now Plan de Dieu) AOC. Do you if the terroir is significantly different there? It could very well be a matter of vine age, too.

Mark Lipton
 
Plan de Dieu is an area bounded by Violes, Jonquiere, Camaret and Travaillon. The name was originally the name of the forest that occupied the area (there have been discussions on Therapy about why the forest was named that). The vineyards are on the flat, receive a lot of heat and sunlight and have rich soil. One might argue that the vines grow all too easily. Vacqueyras has much more varied terrain, including some at the foothills of the Dentelles and I don't know where l'Espiguette's Vacqueyras is. Because of the climate of the Plan de Dieu, a lot of the vineyards favor higher proportions of Mourvedre in the mix and I think there is a minimum amount of it required (20%?). The best I tasted this summer, and that included l'Espiguouette, were quite promising and frequently better than the CdR's and even the CdR Village wines. The adding of the designation has clearly motivated more attention to wines from those vineyards and a consequent improvement in quality. As a wild generalization, I would usually prefer Vacqueyras, but I don't remember the l'Espiguouette line-up that well.

I'm in the office now so I don't have the names of the ones we preferred from this summer, but it that's really a matter of interest, I can get back on it. Most won't be available here, though.
 
What do disorderlies think of Domaine Richaud? I've only tried one from them - an '06 Terre d'Aigues CdR Rouge - but that was weightless and charming. I've wanted to find more ever since.
 
Richaud is one of my favorite Cairannes until their upperest cuvee. I like Terre d'Aigues and like the Cairanne even more. Their l'Ebrascaud, however, is postively hedonistic, alas.
 
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