“It’s wines like this that make me happy to be blogging again.”
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We’ve been fans of Chateau de la Font du Loup’s fine Chateauneuf du Papes and Côtes du Rhônes for more than a decade. We’ve also had the distinct pleasure of spending time with co-owner Anne Charlotte Melia-Bachas on several occasions, eating great food and drinking the Chateau’s marvelous wines. Anne Charlotte and her husband, co-owner Laurent Bachas, prefer the freshness of a younger wine and strive for elegance in everything produced at Font du Loup, and this one is a perfect example.
2021 Chateau de la Font du Loup, Côtes du Rhône Signature, 14.5% alc, $17.99: Clean, dark color, with some earthy black plum, tar and a hint of the barnyard on the nose. Big and grapey on the palate, this is all red and black plums for this taster, earthy, but not as much so as many CdRs I’ve had. Full bodied, dense and structured for some time in the cellar, yet this opens very quickly in the glass, and is more than approachable on short notice. The dense, grapy nature suggests to me that there’s a good dose of Syrah here; in the past, it has been 50-50 Grenache and Syrah blend. The importer’s sales sheet states that it’s produced from a rented one hectare parcel of 50 year old grenache and syrah grown on the same same sandy soil as Font du Loup.
Rather different in style than the Pasquieres CdR I like so well, and a few more bucks a bottle, this one grew on me in a very short time. By the end of the 3rd glass, we became good friends, and I would love to try this with something lamb-centric or cassoulet-ish. It’s a great alternative to a more pricey Vacqueyras or Gigondas, as most of those available at retail really need some time in the cellar to show anywhere close to their best. I got this one from Holiday Market in Royal Oak a few weeks ago for $17.99, but I noticed just today that they have raised the price by $2 since then. That’s still a fair price for what’s in the bottle, especially if you include it in a 6-bottle purchase to get the 10% discount. Find this wine
Imported by AHD Vintners, Warren, MI
It’s wines like this that make me happy to be blogging again. Unfortunately for the folks at la Font du Loup, one of their US-based distributors filed for bankruptcy late last year, and because FdL is listed as a creditor in the bankruptcy, they are left in the lurch for $188,000. This would be hard enough for a big producer to recoup, but la Font du Loup is not a big producer, so they need some help. A Gofundme page has been established, and if you’d like to help these good folks get out of a tough position, you can do that here.
Reporting from Day-twah,
Bastardo
