French Wine Tasting
Friday, December 29th
The last tasting of the year!
Le Petit Bijou
Provence & Rhone Valley with a Chateauneuf-du-Pape Premium pour! See ya there!
Call 256-964-7980 to Reserve!
French Wine Tasting
Le Petit Bijou
Friday, December 29th
4pm - 6pm, $20
With Special Guest, Allaina Lawrence of International Wines
256-964-7980 to Reserve
2020 Domaine De Terrebrune Bandol Blanc, Provence, France $48.99
With each new vintage I continue to marvel at Reynald Delille’s magical ability to transmute blazing Provençal summers into delicious wines of surprising delicacy. His Bandol blanc is as fresh and breezy a wine as you’re likely to find in the south of France, like enjoying a cloudless summer day from the comfort of shade. Remarkably subtle ripe peach and pear notes are balanced with a refreshing, herbal greenness.
—Dustin Soiseth
2022 Kermit Lynch Cotes du Rhone Villages, Rhone Valley, France $19.99
Here it is: the very first edition of an exciting southern Rhône red! Our brand-new Côtes du Rhône Villages is a collaboration with Les Vignerons d’Estézargues, a co-op cellar located just across the river from Avignon. Founded in 1965, Estézargues has championed sustainable and organic viticulture and natural winemaking for decades, making it a rare exception in the world of co-ops. They work closely with their growers, emphasizing organic farming, and manage their cellar with a judicious use of low-intervention techniques: nothing is inoculated, sulfur is kept to a bare minimum, and the wines are bottled without filtration.
56% Grenache, 25% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre, 7% Carignan, 2% Cinsault, 40 years average, 6.2 ha
2020 Rhonea Rasteau Tradition, Rhone Valley, France $21.99
Rasteau Tradition, a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre, comes from a new generation co-operative in the South Rhône Valley. It’s brimming with ripe dark berry fruit typical of wines from the region, while herbaceous notes of rosemary and thyme add to the complexity of this rich, robust wine.
2021 Domaine du Petit Bonhomme "Carrousel" Rouge, Provence, France $32.99
100% Grenache Noir planted in the early 2000s, harvested at optimum maturity. Grapes crushed, destemmed and macerated in infusion for 15 days. Aged in stainless steel vats. Total favorite for this super gourmet wine with a well-balanced extraction, neither too light nor too concentrated, where the tannins are fine, the mouth is crunchy, silky and airy. Beautiful floral aromatic, empyreumatic, red fruits +++ (cherry) and garrigue. Very nice nose after aeration of Espelette pepper and saffron. Everything is done entirely by hand and by horse from the vine to the labeling! Unfiltered , unfined and only 1.5gr of sulphites per bottling!
2016 Catherine de Gueul Cairanne, Rhone Valley, France $29.99
Made from impeccable Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Carignan, and Counoise grapes—organically farmed and kept dry by the mistral—grown in sandy molasse, clay, and limestone, this Cairanne bears all of the southern Rhône notes we love: black cherries, garrigue, olives, and stones. It will pair magically with braised oxtails or grilled lamb chops.
2021 Domaine de Vieux Telegraphe "Telegramme" Chateauneuf-du-pape , Rhone Valley, France $60.99
From the same vineyard that supplies the prestigious Vieux-Télégraphe, this young-vine cuvée is meant for early consumption, so you don’t have to wait to drink great Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
Critical Acclaim
V93Vinous
The 2021 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Télégramme shows the characteristics of the vintage well. Mingling aromas of crushed flowers, fresh raspberry and strawberry as well as dried herbs. On the palate it is medium to full-bodied, layered, framed by a smooth tannin structure and balanced by lively acids.
Barrel Sample: 91-93
RP91Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The plump, succulent 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Telegramme offers cheerful strawberry, raspberry and redcurrant fruit. It's medium to full-bodied, silky and elegant, offering plenty of near-term enjoyment.
JD90Jeb Dunnuck
Black raspberries, juicy cherries, pepper, flowers, and sappy garrigue notes all emerge from the 2021 Châteauneuf Du Pape Télégramme, a medium-bodied Burgundian Châteauneuf Du Pape offering good ripeness and fine tannins. It's already drinking beautifully and is well worth following over the coming decade.