CLOS DE L’OURS: A CONVERSATION WITH CO-OWNER MICHEL BROTONS
Barely three years old, this winery was recently included in “Les domaines incontournable en Provence” in [...]
Red Wine
2015 THROUGH THE LENS OF MY WINE GLASS
2015 was a good year. Brilliant clarity and great depth. Intense bouquets segueing into a well-balanced product with layers of complexity. A lingering finish, imploring the reader, we hope, to return for more in 2016. Provence WineZine is still young but we have great promise [...]
Provençal Pairings: Wine with Food A Special Occasion
Special wines, and special foods, should be saved for special occasions. Today is the 10th anniversary of Mark's and my move to Tucson, and we wanted to celebrate in an appropriate fashion. The wine - a 2007 Château Vignelaure Coteaux d'Aix en Provence - was chosen to mark the day, and the meal to go with it had to be equally special. I chose to serve a roasted pork tenderloin crusted in Provençal herbs [...]
Musings of a Wine MavenBARREL TASTING CONTINUES IN FRANCE NOTWITHSTANDING THE ENTENTE CORDIALE
It’s funny how one can misconstrue history, imagining the raison d’être of certain events to be one thing, and then being surprised to learn that reality is quite different. Such was the case when I moved to France in 1988.
At that time, I was vaguely aware of some sort of official agreement between the French and the English termed the Entente Cordiale. At the time I did not realize it was originally a alliance pertaining to political and military relations, rather assuming the document was drafted and accepted (in 1904) to signal a new era of conviviality between two nations that shared a 1,000 year history of dislike, bordering [...]
THE PASTAGA OF LÉOUBE
In August of last year, Château Léoube’s Secret de Léoube was given a shout by Drinks Magazine, having placed in the gold medal tier of their 2014 Global Rosé Masters wine tasting competition with such local Provence favorites as Château d’Esclans and Mirabeau en Provence. Embarrassingly enough, having lived only an hour away for years, I had been blissfully ignorant of this domain. As Provence [...]
A Belated Salut to the Winemakers of Les Baux-de-Provence
This summer the winemakers of Les Baux-de-Provence celebrated their 20-year anniversary as an appellation. The winemakers group, Les Vignerons de Baux, hosted a party at the Carrières de Lumières in Les Baux-de-Baux (a medieval commune famous for [...]
A CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE IN HONOR OF POPE FRANCIS
Since the arrival of Pope Francis in Washington, D.C. and his stirring address to Congress—rousing all but the most lackluster members of this elite audience—I have been riveted by his words to each of the disparate groups he would go on to meet. No matter what one’s political or religious beliefs may be, there seemed to be something for [...]
CHEZ LES BRUN-CRAVERIS, VIGNERONS “BIO” CUEILLETTE DE… POMME AU JARDIN D’ÉDEN!
Dans un écrin d’authenticité, entre campagne et bord de mer, le domaine oéli-viticole “La Tourraque” est un joyau rare, et - grâce à la famille Brun-Craveris - ce qui pouvait arriver de mieux à ce site d’exception, à deux pas du Cap Taillat (l’endroit le plus naturel de toute la presqu’île - accès seulement à pied), et à quelques minutes du zoo de Saint-Tropez (on dit que sur le quai Suffren, il n’y a que deux genres d’animaux : ceux qui se pavanent, et [...]
Musings of a Wine MavenTRAVELING THE WINE TRAIL FROM LUGDUNUM TO AVENNIO, WONDERING IF 1 WAS A GOOD YEAR?
Growing up in Ohio I recall long car trips counting telephone polls, smiling at Burma Shave signs, and singing the bottles-of-beer-on-the-wall song. For the most part, the landscape was flat, flat, flat. [...]
Musings of a Wine MavenON THE PASSING OF JOSEPH PHELPS (1927-2015)
In April of this year, the California wine industry lost Joseph Phelps. Vineyards bearing his name line the famed Silverado Trail that winds its way past many well regarded Napa Valley vineyards that, for the most part, did not exist when he opened in 1973. He leaves behind his son Bill to continue the family commitment to the creation of outstanding [...]
Copyright © 2025 | MH Purity WordPress Theme by MH Themes