2007 Rhône Valley Wine

So, many of us have heard of, and some have even touted, wines of the 2007 vintage from the Rhône Valley here in France. More than a few critics are calling it the greatest millesime of the decade or more. Regardless of the superlatives, we think it is safe to say that if you can get your hands on a bottle of red from this region at a fair price, buy it!

We have a small advantage over many of our Loyal Readers, understandably, for the fact that we are regularly in France, and that gave us the opportunity the other evening to hold a small degustation over dinner of two reds from this region and this great year. With a small group of friends (so you know you are getting an honest review and not just the raving of another drunk critic), we opened a 2007 Côtes du Rhône Réserve and a 2007 Côtes du Rhône Villages Cairanne, both from the Domaine Perrin & Fils.

This particular domain is major producer of quality wines in the region and is the owner of the celebrated Château de Beaucastel, know to lovers of Châteauneuf-du-Pape worldwide as one of the great names in that appellation. However, we were looking for something drinkable on a daily basis from this great year, and we think we’ve found it.

Both were excellent and quite drinkable, bouvable as the French would say, but there were some interesting differences. Both are made from an assemblage of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre, the latter being the cepage that gives wines from this region the deep, dark and earthy characteristics, but it is there the similarities end. The Cairanne was a beautiful deep purple color with a fruity nose. In the mouth, it was round and satisfying but not terribly complex. There was a generally fruity flavor followed by light tannins but the flavor did not hold in the mouth after swallowing.

On the other hand, the Réserve, while equally deep purple in appearance, offered a more complex nose with fruit and some heavy floral notes with an underlying spiciness. In the mouth, it was complex with very ripe red fruits – almost jam like – and notes of raspberry. The tannins were so light as to be forgotten but the wine coated the mouth and the flavor hung long after swallowing. The sensation was rich and somewhat sweet.

Reading from the domain’s website later, I learned that the Réserve is made from grapes grown in two different vineyards combined with grapes bought from other growers in the area. It is produced in steel tanks and oak barrels (25%) where it spends one year. Although we loved it, they consider it to be less ‘valuable’ than the Cairanne and price it accordingly. The Cairanne is named for the village where the grapes are grown (hence, Côtes du Rhône Villages) and the wine is produced in concrete tanks and oak barrels (20%). It is then bottled and aged the bottles in their cellars for 6 months before being sold.

All in, both these wines were great value for their prices. The Réserve is modestly less expensive (a couple of dollars cheaper per bottle) and, we decided, delivered more on the night we drank it.

Drink wisely!