If you are looking for fine French wine and food, consider
the Loire Valley region of central France. You may find a
bargain, and I hope that you'll have fun on this
fact-filled wine education tour in which we review a white
Sauvignon Blanc-Chardonnay from Touraine in the eastern
part of the region.
Among France's eleven wine-growing regions the Loire Valley
ranks third in total acreage devoted to vineyards. Given
that France's longest river the Loire runs for 620 miles
(one thousand kilometers) across the country, in many ways
it could be thought of as a series of regions. Here they
are running from west to east: Nantais whose primary grape
is the white Muscadet, Anjou-Saumur whose primary grapes
are the white Chenin Blanc and the red Cabernet Franc,
Touraine whose primary white grapes are Chenin Blanc and
Sauvignon Blanc and whose primary red grape is Cabernet
Franc, and Central Vineyards whose primary white grape is
Sauvignon Blanc and whose primary red grape is Pinot Noir.
We will try to review at least one wine from each of these
four areas.
Chambord is home to the largest of the Loire castles, built
as a hunting lodge for Francois I early in the Sixteenth
Century. Some think that Leonardo da Vinci was responsible
for the original design. The statistics of this French
Renaissance hunting lodge are stupendous. There are 440
rooms but only 365 chimneys. How would you feel to be
assigned to a room without a chimney? The wall surrounding
the property is 20 miles (32 kilometers) long enclosing a
thirteen thousand acre (fifty two square kilometer) forest.
The story has it that the Emperor wanted to divert the
Loire River to create a moat but wiser heads prevailed and
he had to be satisfied with diverting the Cosson River.
When he came to visit it took twelve thousand horses to
bring his stuff; they had to bring in all the furniture and
all the food except for game. Someone counted up how much
time he actually spent there over the years and the grand
total is about seven weeks. When the French Revolution came
the castle floors were sold for timber and the castle doors
were burnt to keep people warm during the sales. The castle
now belongs to the government.
Before reviewing the Loire wine and imported cheeses that
we were lucky enough to purchase at a local wine store and
a local Italian food store, here are a few suggestions of
what to eat with indigenous wines when touring this
beautiful region. Start with Rillettes (Coarse Pork Pate).
For your second course savor Lapin au Vouvray (Rabbit with
Onions, Shallots, and Vouvray Wine). And as dessert indulge
yourself with Tarte aux Pommes a la Confiture de Chinon
(Apple Pie with Chinon Wine Jam).
OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review
are purchased at the full retail price.
Wine Reviewed Cheverny Blanc V. V. (Terra Vitis) 2005 12.5%
alcohol about $15
I don't know why but the usual marketing materials were
unavailable. So I accessed the producer's web site that
offered following blurb - translated from the French by
Google. Cheverny Blanc Old women Vines resulting from the
marriage of Sauvignon and Chardonnay is manually collected
with maximum maturity in order to release from the very
constant flavours and a powerful gustatory length; to be
useful between 7 and 8 degrees accompanied by fish out of
sauce, scallop, snails as. Whaaat?
Didn't anybody tell Google that V. V. (Vieilles Vignes)
stands for old vines and not Old women Vines? Here is my
rapid translation: Cheverny Blanc Old Vines (wine) comes
from Sauvignon (Blanc) and Chardonnay (grapes) that were
manually harvested at their full maturity to bring out
their powerful aromas and long, powerful flavors. Serve
between 7 and 8 degrees C (44 to 46 degrees F) with fish in
sauce, scallops, or snails. Frankly, I would rather review
wines than translate documents. And that's what I am doing
next.
My first meal was whole-wheat spaghetti with a homemade
tuna, red onion, garlic, and Greek Olive sauce that had a
commercial tomato spaghetti sauce as its base. I doused on
a lot of grated Parmesan cheese. The wine was light,
refreshingly acidic, and somewhat sweet. It was lemony with
a taste of honey. When I finished the glass after finishing
the meal I had the feeling that the wine's quality went up.
The next meal consisted of a commercially prepared
barbecued chicken breast, rice, and an eggplant side. The
Cheverny started off between weak and light but later
picked up some strength. Interestingly enough it was quite
present when paired with the tomato-based grilled eggplant.
The final pairing involved an omelet with local Provolone
cheese and Greek Olives. The wine was somewhat assertive
but short. As I had a little left I paired it with a
high-quality chocolate-coated ice cream bar. The wine was
nice and sweet and a good match, at least at first.
The first cheese pairing was with a mild Italian Pecorino
Friulano cheese. They made a good couple; the wine showed a
lot fruit and pleasant acidity and was rather long. The
second cheese pairing was with a more forceful Dutch Edam
cheese. The results were fairly similar but the wine was
definitely flatter.
Final verdict. This wine is best with rather bland food and
as such is overpriced. At a much lower price point it would
be worth buying again. I really expect more at this price.
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Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on
computers and the Internet, but he prefers drinking fine
Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods and
people. He knows about dieting but now eats and drinks what
he wants, in moderation. He teaches classes in computers at
an Ontario French-language community college. His new wine,
diet, health, and nutrition website
http://www.wineinyourdiet.com links to his other sites.
