Patrick Lesec's "Bouquet" is One Fine Value Wine

There are plenty of choices from France's Cotes du Rhone area in your local wine shop. You will find the Grenache- and Syrah-based wines plentiful in any good shop worthy of your business.

There are so many wines to choose from, most quite tasty, it's hard to remember anything truly outstanding. Or at least outstanding enough to remember the name or write it down. That might be true until you sample the wines of Patrick Lesec.

A 2005 bottle of Lesec's Cotes Du Rhone Bouquet was nothing short of remarkable for the price point. For $12.99 you're going to have a great bottle of wine that will hold up to most dinner dishes.

It's a terrific wine with herbal notes, a big ripe and rich flavor, but still medium bodied and smooth on the finish. And for the real wine geeks, the first taste of this wine screamed "DIRT!" If you want to taste the "terroir" the soil and environment where the wine is made, or better understand the concept, find a bottle of Patrick Lesec's Bouquet.

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, gave this juice an 89 rating. I thought it was every bit that good. Most of us are influenced by the price point though more than Parker. If you buy your wine on a budget,try this wine.

It's a cliche' but this is far better wine than the price point!

This is also posted at my blog Grape Sense - A Glass Half Full.

I Spy...

This is a cross post from my blog Wannabe Wino. This wine received an 89 from the Wine Spectator.

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from Spy Valley Winery.

With my little eye a wine that's an excellent buy! (Oh, and I rhyme too!) I first came across Spy Valley wines at the 2008 Wine Blogger Conference (woohoo, only 18 days until I meet up with my wine blog friends again!) and then had a chance to try them again at the New Zealand Winemakers' Tasting in Dc. Folks from the winery contacted me and offered to send along a more complete sampling of their offerings, so I will have 5 wines to bring you over the next weeks! We first tried the 2008 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc. It clocked in at 13% alcohol by volume, had a screw cap closure, and retails for as low as $12 on the internet.

On the nose I found lime, grapefruit, citrus, crushed stone, lemon, and tropical undertones. The nose smelled like a wine that would be tart and crisp, and the mouth did not disappoint! In the mouth I got grapefruit, lime, almost a hint of green apple, tart citrus, passion fruit, and an herbal quality. I found the wine to be really tart, extremely refreshing, and with great acidity and structure. We drank it with grilled pork chops and corn on the cob, sitting on our back patio enjoying a lovely evening.