While browsing at one of my favorite shops...


1999 Clos Sainte-Pauline Clairette du Languedoc Sus Castel - France,
Languedoc Roussillon, Languedoc, Clairette du Languedoc (8/15/2006)

Presented to me blind as something to sip on while I browsed one of my
favorite wine shops. The proprietor is good about showing me
interesting things and trying to trick me. This is a deep yellow,
heading to gold color with a bit of visible richness. One whiff of the
nose and I'm immediately thinking mature Loire chenin blanc (slight
but pleasant oxidation, sweet baking apples, some lanolin). I could not
have been more wrong, and that was evident as soon as I took the first
sip. Rich and round in the mouth, balanced but without the vibrant
acidity I would have expected from Loire chenin. Fruit on the palate is
more ripe apple, macerated white grapes, a little melon. Persistent
finish shows peach and almond. Made predominantly from grenache blanc
in an intentionally oxidative style, it was enjoyable as a novelty but
I'm having a hard time imagining how I would match it with food. Also
having a hard time imagining how they were allowed to use the
"Clairette" appellation, given composition.

Posted from CellarTracker

Jim wrote:
> Made predominantly from grenache blanc
> in an intentionally oxidative style, it was enjoyable as a novelty but
> I'm having a hard time imagining how I would match it with food. Also
> having a hard time imagining how they were allowed to use the
> "Clairette" appellation, given composition.

Jim,
Are you sure about that composition? Clairette du Languedoc should
be exactly what you'd expect. In support of this view, I offer the
following from the website
http://www.vins-languedoc-roussillon...i-lang01.html:

"est composée d'un seul cépage, la Clairette Blanche dont les grappes
sont formées de très petits raisins. C'est l'une des plus anciennes
appellations du Languedoc, elle est reconnue en AOC depuis 1948."

OTOH, the fairly well-known Clairette de Die can be as much as 75%
Muscat, so go figger.

Mark Lipton