Pierre Amadieu Côtes du Rhône

"Among the world's great reds, Rhônes are the most untamed. Flavors dart around in them like shooting stars. There are whooshes of sweet earthiness and surges of smoky black fruit. The wines' howling spiciness has no parallel. Rhônes are the wine equivalent of a primal scream."
The Wine Bible, Karen MacNeil

Pierre Amadieu
Côtes du Rhône
Roulpierre
2006

When I first gave a glass to Stan for tasting his response was a surprised look and "that's funky." I'm not sure, but I don't think he meant funky as a compliment. This wine is tart, tangy, spicy, and peppery. It's buzzing with dark cherries and has a dry, minerally finish. Certainly not everyone's cup of tea but I enjoyed it. This wine asks a little more of the drinker - it demands attention - so settling into the couch with a book isn't going to work this time. But if you have the patience to dart through the various zings, you'll be rewarded.

I've never been a huge fan of French wines, mostly because they take so much more knowledge and attention. The wine world over there is so marvelously layered that I have a hard time finding my way around. The "new world" method tells me what grape I'm drinking but when dealing with the old world I have to remember things like French geography. I never studied French geography so this is quite a leap. Lately I've tasted a few wines that make me want to leap. You're welcome to come along, if you like.

The above quote about Rhône wines made me like this wine even more. I like a wine (or region) that won't be pinned down. In my readings I found that there's Northern Rhône and Southern Rhône, which are dramatically different, and never the twain shall meet. Côtes du Rhône, the wine in question, is the only exception. Côtes du Rhône (and it's fancier sibling Côtes du Rhône Villages) is the only wine that can be made in both districts of the region. Côtes du Rhônes is also the only wine that can be made of any grapes in the region, while other appellations must choose from a much smaller subset. Why must the French be so cryptic? I went to Pierre Amadieu's website and found slightly more helpful information. This wine was made in Gigondas, which is in fact Southern Rhône, and was made primarily of grenache and syrah. This wine is of their lowest level, which they call Découvertes - or Discovery (thanks to Google for translation help.)

There's lots more information I could bring up but just one more detail that I found interesting: Côtes du Rhône is often used as a café wine in France. According to French taste, this is a humble wine for everyday drinking. For once, I'm in agreement with the French.