Even today, get away from the bright lights of its sophisticated coastal cities, and Provence has a wild and ancient feel to it that is reflected in its wines, even those elegant pink wines in fancy bottles.
Let’s taste a few.
The photo above is home to a lovely rosé – Domaine Gassier.
2024 Old Vine Ranch California Sauvignon Blanc ($20). More tropical than green fruits with a touch of oxidation.
2022 Bouchaine Napa Valley Chardonnay ($50). Good weight, yet lively on the palate with flavors of apple, banana and caramel, good acidity and a long, golden finish.
2021 Château Malherbe “Selecion de Parcelles No 19 and No. 20” Côtes de Provence White ($55). Nice aged-apple toastiness with good finishing acidity.
2024 Roseblood Côteaux Varois Rosé ($27). Classic Provence style – mellow orange and grapefruit flavors with a tart finish.
2024 Gassier “6 Pas du Moins” Côtes de Provence Sainte Victoire Rosé ($35). A lovely wine with lilting yet complex flavors of orange and other citrus, light and lean with great minerality.
2023 Old Vine Ranch California Cabernet Sauvignon ($20). Fruit-forward with good creamy blackberry fruit – smooth with mild tannins and lightly sweet.
NV Old Vine Ranch “Lot No. 75” California Red Wine ($20). Mostly red fruit, a little fruity sweet, tangy and a trifle thin in body.
2020 La Selvanella Chianti Classico Riserva ($39). Good vitality with lots of gamy flavors, very long on the palate and with a load of dusty tannins.
2022 Bouchaine Napa Valley Pinot Noir ($50). Nice dark cherry and plummy flavors with a hint of red Vermouth, good structure and length, and pleasant tannins.
2022 Château Malherbe Côtes de Provence Red Wine ($55). A Syrah-dominant blend that is elegant yet with a touch of edginess – mature blackberry flavors with savory, earthy and leathery notes.
2020 Black Ankle “Phyllite” Frederick County, MD, Red Wine ($74). A Syrah that is very Rhone-like with dark red-berry flavors, earthy and cask notes with a savory finish.
2013 Appasionata “Fortissimo” Chehalem Mountains Pinot Noir ($163). A fine aged Pinot Noir late released – lovely mature flavors of cherries and plums, bright acidity with good metallic minerality. A special occasion wine.
Prices listed are generally SRP or from wine-searcher.com. As more wineries are now shipping direct-to-consumer, check the winery website if you can’t find a bottle in your retail store.
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