Thursday, July 24, 2008

Domaine de Font-Sane Cotes du Ventoux, 2005

For me, this is the ultimate in Cotes du Ventoux--deeper and more serious than La Vieille Ferme but similar in its fruit intensity. This is the perfect wine to drink this summer on your deck or in your backyard because it smells like a herb garden surrounded by flowers in bloom. As I poured the wine last night, a hummingbird seemed to spot it from the other side of the yard and immediately approached the table, spinning like a helicopter just a few feet away from the wine. He knew what was good, but fortunately he didn't dive bomb the glass.

The color, as the hummingbird undoubtedly noted, is a beautiful deep crimson. The nose just bursts with excitement--flowers, spices, garden herbs and dark cherry/berry fruit. There's no oak but plenty of fruit tannins and the smell of macerated peels. Now there's licorice, black pepper, cayenne pepper and paprika. It's a big wine but everything is in proportion to the beautiful ripe fruit. It has the power and beauty of a Gigondas (Font-Sane is located in Gigondas) but with some of the dark tones of a good Vacqueyras.

I like this wine so much I'm tempted to keep it all for myself. But I'll tell you: it's available at Village Corner in Ann Arbor for $10.99.

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