Wine & Spirits - October 2019 - 61

FOCUS: SOUTHWEST FRANCE
also has the structure to age. § Grape Expectations, Richmond, CA
272872

90 | Jean-Luc Baldès

$112

2013 Cahors Clos Triguedina The New
Black Wine Malbec ^ In a nod to a traditional
method, Jean-Luc Baldès bakes the grapes
for this wine overnight to concentrate their
flavors before pressing them. The combination of mulled fruit flavors and oak notes
from 12 months in casks created a Cahors
that reminded several of our tasters of old
Rioja. Notes of orange zest and herbs bring
a brightness to the dark fruit, and highlight
an energy that contrasts the wine's mature
caramel notes. The sweetness of the fruit
requires something rich to match, like roast
goose or Peking duck. § Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL
272744

87 | Château Saint-Sernin

$15

2015 Cahors Mana Malbec (Best Buy) ^ Vinified entirely in stainless steel, this is thoroughly saturated with purple-plum fruit, yet
light on its feet, with a peppery briskness. It's
an easy, inviting style. § Vin Colorado Imports,
Denver, CO

COMTE TOLOSAN
272986

90 | Château Clamens

$10

2018 Comté Tolosan Domaine de Clamens (Best Buy) ^ Jean-Michel Bégué runs
this small estate in Fronton, focused on
the local négrette. Here he blends the darkskinned grape with 30 percent each merlot
and syrah, adding a plush plumminess to
its earthy, violet-scented flavors. The wine is
round and full-bodied, with firm, fine tannins that give it shape. § Bordeaux Tradition,
Pawtucket, RI
272989

87 | Château Clamens

$15

87 | Famille Arbeau

$13

2018 Comté Tolosan Julie (Best Buy) ^
Teeth-stainingly purple, this is a dark, juicy
blend of equal parts négrette, merlot, cabernet sauvignon and syrah. The soft milk-chocolate flavors and texture suggest drinking it
with a light chill and some red meat off the
grill. § Vin de Garde Wines, Portland, OR
272730
2018 Comté Tolosan Je Suis à Boire Côt
(Best Buy) ^ A summer-weight red, this is light
and spicy, with resinous herbal tones that
lend it bitterness. Its edgy flavors will take
on a platter of summer sausages and hard
cheeses. § The Original Wine, Chicago, IL

COTES DE BERGERAC

SAINT-MONT

273282

86 | Le Clos du Breil

273249
$11

2016 Côtes de Bergerac L'Odyssée (Best
Buy) ^ Herbal and fresh, with a cranberry
crunch, this is a summer-weight red made
from cabernets franc and sauvignon. § Surville Enterprises, Miami, FL

FRONTON
272728

87 | Famille Arbeau

$13

2018 Fronton On l'Appelle Négrette (Best
Buy) ^ As straightforward as the name ("We
call it négrette"), this is clean, fresh and juicy
with blackberry flavor. § Ideal Wine & Spirits,
Medford, MA

GAILLAC
273256

91 | Domaine Sarrabelle

$15

2017 Gaillac Saint André (Best Buy) ^ This
wine-made from braucol with a touch of
duras-carries its red fruit with such ease
that it's hard to stop drinking it. It's brisk
and spicy, with a sour tang that intensifies
the wine's sense of energy. That freshness
and vibrancy lasts for days after the wine is
opened-though it was only a sense of duty
to the wine that kept me from drinking it up
much sooner. § M.R.O.I., Woodland Hills, CA

MARCILL AC
273371

91 | Domaine Laurens

$15

2018 Marcillac Cuvée Pierres Rouges
Mansois (Best Buy) ^ Based in the medieval
town of Clairvaux, the Laurens family have
worked with fer servadou (locally known as
mansois) since 1975. They offer a textbook
version here, smoky and gravelly in its tannins, and dark in black-currant flavor. It's
also salty and peppery, with a cured-sausage
flavor that makes it especially palate-whetting. § Potomac Selections, Landover, MD

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90 | Plaimont

$13

2016 Saint-Mont Témoignage (Best Buy) ^
This cooperative takes its name from Plaisance (Pl), Aignan (ai) and Saint Mont
(mont), the regions from which its 800
growers hail. It's the tannat of St-Mont that
take pride of place in this wine, along with
15 percent each pinenc and cabernet sauvignon. The blend is rich but not heavy, with a
gentle gaminess and lilting spice that lifts its
black-currant flavors. § White Wine Situation,
Los Angeles, CA

DESSERT
273272

93 | Domaine Laguille

$10

91 | Domaine Tariquet

$20

2017 Côtes de Gascogne Petit Manseng
(Best Buy) ^ While Colette and Guy Vignoli
are most known for their line of Armagnacs,
this late-harvested petit manseng shows the
quality of the grapes they grow on their estate
in Eauze. It's a velvety white, the mouthfilling texture saturated with smoky, golden
fruit flavor. A pleasantly bitter spice contrasts
the honeyed notes, so that the wine comes
across as neither savory nor sweet; it's just
voluptuous, a shapely, elegant white to pour
before dinner or after, with pâté or cheese. §
Montaigne Imports, San Francisco, CA
272761
2018 Côtes de Gascogne Premières Grives ^
Premières Grives ("first thrushes") refers to
the birds that arrive in Gascony's vineyards
in the autumn, when the late-harvested
grapes are picked. This wine, made from gros
manseng, shows its ripeness in golden fruit
flavors and a beeswax texture. It's more rich
than it is sweet, with a light, pleasant bitterness that suggests pairing the wine with goat
cheese. § Frederick Wildman and Sons, NY ■

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Wine & Spirits - October 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - October 2019
