Sun 31 May 2009
Friends, this is not a great wine, but greatness is not always required, and for sitting around on the porch or the patio, for sipping beside the pool or on a picnic, the Domaine de Ballade Sauvignon Blanc Colombard 2008, Vin de Pays de Côtes de Gasgogne, is a quaffable winner. Composed of 70 percent sauvignon blanc and 30 percent colombard — remember when Paul Masson made jugs of “French Colombard”? — this wine smells like pink grapefruit, lime, smoked pears and white pepper. In the mouth, the grapefruit element fades into green grape, though still heightened by the lively lime quality and jazzed by squinching acidity. It finishes with a chalky, minerally and slightly minty character. This is incredibly tasty and refreshing and would be a fine match with ceviche or grilled shrimp. Very Good. About $10, a Terrific Bargain.
Imported by Bourgeois Family Selection, Concord, N.C.
(Yes, the date on the label image is 2006, but the wine under review is the 2008.)
May 31st, 2009 at 4:05 pm
Frederic, is this available in memphis? please say yes!
May 31st, 2009 at 4:25 pm
Now it’s SQUINCHING acidity. Acidity must be served, even with neologisms. Or is “squinching” a derivative of “ginchiest,” as Connie Stevens declared Edd Byrnes to be in “Kookie, Kookie, Lend Me Your Comb”?
Ringing, chiming, clanging minds want to know!
May 31st, 2009 at 10:43 pm
With a mention of Paul Masson, I always feel compelled to post the outtakes of a drunk Orson Welles trying to get his lines right for a commercial:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5LkDNu8bVU
All this talk is making me thirsty for a little Hearty Burgundy, or perhaps some Riunite on ice.
June 1st, 2009 at 3:22 pm
Melissa, yes, the Ballade is available in Memphis, so drink up!
Senor Strappo, think of “squinching” as onomatopoeic, as in acidity that makes your mouth go “squinch, squinch.”
Benito, I always thought that Orson Welles looked embarrassed and uncomfortable making those “no wine before its time” commercials, but he made his bed, so he had to lie in it.
June 2nd, 2009 at 11:27 am
I’ve been seeing more and more of those little Cotes du Gasgogne whites coming across my tasting table, and I’m with you, they are a welcome addition. So refreshing and vibrant, not complex or profound…nor are they trying to be, just damn delicious, gulpable white wine.