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closeDown along France’s Rhone River, south of the region where the pricey Burgundy wines are made, is the Rhone Valley. Many a time when I was put off by the prices of Burgundy on a restaurant wine list, I have turned to Rhone wines to save my daughter’s inheritance.
Oh, you can pay well over $100 for a fine Hermitage red from the Rhone, and have something to brag about to your friends. But there are plenty of alternatives in supermarket price ranges.
Rhone Valley wines come in two types. In the northern Rhone, the primary red grape is syrah, and the wines, such as M. Chapoutier’s Crozes-Hermitage, are big, fat and powerful. Sometimes they need years of age to mellow, although winemakers there are growing them riper these days for earlier drinking. In the southern Rhone winemakers start with syrah, then add grenache and up to 11 other grapes, turning out wines that can be inexpensive and easy to drink young.
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The Grapevine
Laurie Daniel
Laurie Daniel’s column will return next week.
Big, syrah-based northern Rhone wines like Chapoutier’s are great for rich, fatty dishes like prime rib, roast goose, roast duck or knuckle of pork. The lighter, grenache-based southern Rhones go well with everyday meals—meatloaf, pizza, roast chicken, maybe even salmon or tuna.
White wines from both areas are intensely fruity with hints of minerals, made of such grapes as grenache blanc, marsanne and viognier. They go well with spicy food, from Chinese to Tex-Mex.
Big, super-dry rose wines are popular in the Rhone, made of such red grapes as grenache, cinsault and syrah. They get their pale color when the white juice is permitted only brief contact with the red skins after the grapes are crushed. They’re good with fruit platters, picnic sandwiches, chicken or tuna salads.
Highly recommended
2007 M. Chapoutier Crozes-Hermitage “La Petite Ruche” red (syrah): deep purple in color; powerful and rich, with stewed cherry aromas and flavors; smooth, warm with alcohol; long finish; $25.
2008 Jaboulet Cotes du Rhone “Parallele 45” white (grenache blanc, marsanne, viognier, bourboulenc): deep golden color, apricot, peach and mineral flavors; $13.
Recommended
2007 M. Chapoutier Crozes-Hermitage “La Petite Ruche” white (marsanne): light chartreuse color; very fruity and minerally, with apricot flavors; $25.
2008 Jaboulet Cotes du Rhone Parallele 45 rose (grenache, cinsault, syrah): dry, full-bodied; tart strawberry and cranberry flavors; $13.
2006 Jaboulet Cotes du Rhone “Parallele 45” red (grenache, syrah): rich and muscular, with ripe black cherry and mineral flavors; $13.
2006 Maison Bouachon Les Rabassieres Cotes du Rhone red (grenache, syrah,
mourvedre): soft and ripe; spicy black plum flavors; medium body; $15.
2006 Maison Bouachon Chateauneuf-du- Pape “La Tiare du Pape” red (syrah, mourvedre, counoise, terret noir, muscadine, Vaccarse): oak and black cherry flavors; smooth and rich; $39.
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