Nice to see an old familiar brand on the Whole Foods Holiday Top Ten wine list again this year - M. Chapoutier. Back on the 2008 list, Doug Bell at Whole Foods included the 2007 M. Chapoutier Belleruche Côtes-Du-Rhône Rouge. This year, it's a white from the same producer, the 2008 M. Chapoutier Belleruche Special Selection Côtes-Du-Rhône Blanc.The first most noticeable thing about the M. Chapoutier wines is the use of braille on their labels, something I hadn't seen before last year. According to the M. Chapoutier website: The expression of an assertive, confident personality, Braille has been present since 1996 on all M. CHAPOUTIER labels. Far from being anecdotic, this symbol draws its origin from the very history of the Hermitage vineyard. Maurice Monier de La Sizeranne, owner of the plot of the Hermitage, la Sizeranne, is also the inventor of the first version of abbreviated Braille. The trademark pays tribute to this man but also expresses the desire to reach out to and include all people with sight-impairments, lovers of good wines.
As we all know labels don't make the wine, but there are some cool enough labels out there that you just can't ignore them and this one is one of the most unique. But, what about the wine? On the nose, lemon, melon and apricot - a nice blend of fruits, not too complex, but not one dimensional either. Quite dry on the mouth, drier than I expected, given the fruits on the aroma, but with dry, I expected it to be crisper than it was. Also, noticed a bit of a bitter note on the finish...but nothing to make me shy away from this wine. Overall, I enjoyed it and thought it was a nice, balanced white.
What Whole Foods has to say about it: A highly respected family vintner brings us this authentic, floral special selection White with a loving sense of place. Try its apple, lime and white pepper notes with roasted veggies or pork, or indulge with Amadeus Austrian Select cheese and you'll swear you're eating fondue.
Of all the wines on the holiday list this year, this is the one that was the furthest off in terms of what I picked up vs. what Whole Foods picked up. If you've had this wine, let me know what you pulled out of the wine and we'll compare notes.
What you should do: Getting hard for the Whole Foods wines because I'm preparing to go next week and buy a bunch of these. This one's no exception. I would buy it. It's a good value, a nice wine, from a trusted producer who clearly cares about the world around them. If you had to pick up only one, I would probably err on the side of the Pepperwood Grove Pinot Noir, but if there are a couple you can afford, this is also a good one to have on hand.
My rating: 87
NOTE: This wine was sent to me as a free sample.
Gadget
0 Response to "Whole Foods Wine Holiday Top Ten List - 2008 M. Chapoutier Belleruche Special Selection Côtes-Du-Rhône Blanc"