You don’t see Roussanne every day. Very little of it is grown in the US – less than 400 acres in all of California. And what there is is very fussy. Roussanne ripens very late and very unevenly. In a cool site such as Vivio, you might eek out two tons per acre if you’re lucky. In short, you really have to want it to grow it.
We most certainly do. Our version is at once savory and fruity, exotic and familiar. If those descriptors seem inconsistent, well, that’s Roussanne for you. On the nose, nectarine, pear and peach. The mouth follows suit but adds a sour orange flavor. As it warms up, you can taste mango and quince. The finish is minty and slightly herbal. Because of its high natural acidity, Roussanne offers the promise of long life. But that assumes you don’t drink it all before the next vintage.
We live in the bear state of California but are inspired by the wines of France. So we employ an old world approach to wine growing that favors restraint over ripeness, finesse over flamboyance. Our aim is to craft wines that show a kinship with those of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Loire and the Rhone. Wines that are their sosie. (Sosie – pronounced so-zee – is French for “double” or “look-alike”.)
We believe in hands-off wine making and limit our intervention to the absolute minimum. Our label often carries the term ‘No Amendments’. This means we did not add any acid, tannin, enzymes or any other kind of chemical besides a small amount of sulfur. We also use native yeasts whenever possible. As a result our wines are very vineyard and vintage expressive, which is what we feel wines should be. As we rely on natural acidity, we tend to pick earlier than most Sonoma and Napa wineries and thus tend toward lower alcohol than many. We also try to source our fruit from cool climate vineyards or those with a strong marine influence.
In selecting which wines to make, we decided not to make yet another Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay and instead showcase French varietals we love and are under-represented in California.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, KS, ME, MD, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OR, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
I’m supposed to rat this one, but I didn’t know it was coming and I don’t have this UPS thing figured out yet. I have to go get it from the distribution center tomorrow so I’ll try to have it out by tomorrow night.
From Terroirist (no idea)
Bold yellow color. Aromas pop with super tropical combos of pineapple, lychee, honey butter, almond, tropical flowers. Medium-bodied (only 12.9% alcohol) with moderating acidity, which really helps, and there’s a creamy, waxy texture. Flavors of yellow apples and pineapple, laced with floral potpourri, salted nuts, white tea, there’s some underlying mineral tones. Bold and tropical in flavors yet it’s nuanced and light on its feel – a nice combo to find in California Roussanne. Native yeasts, barrel fermented, all maloactic fermentation. (90 points IJB) 3/19
@kaolis I was just reading some patter on their website. Sounds like this could be pretty interesting, a more restrained approach.
Looking forward to those promised Rat TN’s, if we don’t have to scuttle the ship.
Sounds really interesting…I don’t know if I’ve ever tried a Roussanne. Wife and I are neither Chardonnay fans; she prefers Marlborough Sauv Blancs, and I do like Marlborough Sauv Blancs, BUT I’m still searching for white varietals with a bit less acidity and more “structure” (for lack of a better word) that more closely matches my red-wine-preferential palette. The audio description saying this is between a Chard and a Sauv Blanc has me intrigued. Hoping for good rats!
Not sure if this helps anyone but I believe bottles of Roussanne showed up in a mixed case from Peter Wellington (Old Wine Woot ) and I enjoyed it. I’m not a big white lover and do not like heavily oaked Chards. Roussanne was a pleasant surprise, Id say a combo of Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc if memory serves.
I remember tasting a Roussanne when visiting Cass in Paso Robles 5 years or so years ago and really enjoying it. I’m not a big fan of many Chards, and it was a white that I really enjoyed.
Good morning!
I pick up the rat bottle of Sosie Roussanne last night from UPS.
PNP 45-50deg F:
Cork has minimal penetration, approx. 3mm. Color in glass is a very nice medium gold color. Picture is a bit lighter in color. Medium viscosity with legs take a very long time to form.
Nose is a bit restrained. Primarily getting lemon with faint smells green apple, a faint fresh herbal note (I can’t quite place), and wet gravel.
The wine is dry with medium to medium-high acidity. Alcohol seems low with a medium body that is similar to other roussannes I’ve tried. Flavors, like the nose, are predominately Meyer lemon with faint apricot and honeysuckle. The wine does a nice job of coating your pallet, with a bit more in the mid and back. There is a bit of mineral undertones to the wine that keep it crisp. Flavors linger 20-30 seconds.
After about an hour open at room temperature (wine 50-55deg F): Flavors are similar with some tart orange and mango sneaking in. Viscosity and acidity about the same.
Tried the wine with some mild hard white cheeses and baked crackers. These rounded out the mouthfeel and tamed the acidity. Honeysuckle was more prominent.
This is a good wine. A bit more restrained than the last bottle of Wellington Roussanne I had. That bottle had slightly more body and more stonefruit flavors.
The acidity makes this roussanne a good pairing with shell fish, white fish, and certain spicier dishes.
Saved ½ the bottle in the fridge for tonight. Hope to have better pairing to accompany this roussanne.
@mtnzj
Day 2: Not much change in the wine. Getting kid to bed late meant simple dinner of rotisserie chicken, simple mashed potatoes, and green beans. Same smell and taste. A bit more tangy. Food pairing was meh. Didn’t hide the wine flavors nor did it bring out anything interesting in the simple food.
I had my first Roussanne & Marsanne nearly a decade ago through Wine Woot and then a bottle or two in the Wellington selloffs. Love every bottle I’ve had of this variety so far. Nuanced & complex is how I recall it, but I’m in need of a refresher. In for a case!
Scott with Sosie Wines here. I’m the owner/winemaker for Sosie wines. I’ll be checking forums as much as I can. Happy to answer questions about this wine or about anything else Sosie or Wine related.
@sosiescott Thanks for stopping by, Scott. I hope you will indulge some geeky questions about your winemaking processes. How do you go about inoculating the must with ‘native yeast’? Do you make a pied-à-terre or something similar before harvest, or do you have a ‘native yeast culture’ on hand or something else entirely? I know that the wild yeasts tend to live on the grape skins, but white wines tend to be pressed before fermentation begins. Also, could you comment on your malolactic fermentation? Does it just follow naturally from your native yeast inoculation, or do you have a separate malolactic culture? Some people (myself included) have reacted to the overprocessed Cali ‘buttery, oaky Chard’ and so treat malolactic in any white wine with suspicion. Is this just a ‘point grabbing winemaking’ issue and not a malolactic-specific issue? (Or is it a personal problem;)
With native (sometimes called wild) fermentation there is no inoculation step. The wine will pick up yeasts from the grape skins. Once the grapes are processed and the juice is released those yeasts will use the sugar as food and start to grow a population. Yeast populations double every 4 hours or so (depending on temperature) so it only takes a few days to reach a population large enough ferment the wine. Even with white wine which is pressed immediately and the skins discarded, those yeasts make it into the juice.
Typically a yeast called saccharomyces cerevisiae ferments wine but in those first few days other types of yeast strains are also involved, Kloeckera and Candida are two examples. This is what differentiates an inoculated fermentation in that these yeasts produce very different flavor profiles and give a wine more horizontal complexity. They are however not very alcohol tolerent and are killed off once the wine reaches 1 or 2% alcohol. With an inoculated fermentation the alcohol reaches those levels before those other yeasts can get going.
Eventually one yeast strain of saccharomyces cerevisiae will dominate and do the rest of the fermentation.
The Malolactic fermentation for us is also native. This is done by a bacteria called Oenococcus which is also found natively on grape skins. I prefer doing MLF natively as it takes longer to complete compared to inoculating. The longer the process takes, the later in wine lifestyle we can do the initial sulfur dioxide add which means lower total sulfur dioxide in the wine.
The buttery aspect of white wines is a direct result of MLF. The process creates a chemical called Diacetyl which is what produces that flavor.
Winemakers have a trick here though, Oenococcus will eat Diacetyl so after the MLF is complete we wait and taste and give the bacteria time to process the Diacetyl that was created. After a few months that butteriness is gone and that is when we do the initial Sulfur Dioxide add.
@KitMarlot@sosiescott
That’s super interesting, Scott! Thanks!
I’ve heard from other winemakers that different strains of malolactic bacteria also just produce different amounts of diacetyl overall, which can contribute to MLF not resulting in buttery wines.
Also, what are your thoughts on it truly being grape skin yeast vs winery-native yeast? I’ve heard more than one winemaker say they couldn’t get their “native” yeast fermentation to begin when they moved into a brand new and clean winery. Spontaneous fermentation in either case, to be sure, but I wonder if you have the same strains in all your wines even if they’re from different vineyards (which would, presumably, have different yeast strains around).
@sosiescott Wow, fantastic answer Scott. Thanks for taking the time to provide so much detail. Didn’t put it together that the ‘Buttery Chardonnay’ flavor was from diacetyl from incomplete MLF. Just to be clear, your must/wine doesn’t see any sulfur dioxide until the completion of all fermentation activities?
@klezman I don’t know that any malolactic bacteria strains are known to be lower diacetyl producers but it is possible. Most strains are selected to be viable in stressful environments like wines with high alcohol or very low PH’s (below 3.2). Native fermentations are challenging with those types of wines since the characteristics of the yeast/bacteria doing the fermentation is unknown.
As for where the yeast comes from with native fermentations, that is not an easy answer. Yeast is definitely coming in with the grapes and participate at some level in the fermentation. However the yeast in the winery (the house strain) most likely takes over at some point as it is probably a fairly robust strain that has adapted well to the environment.
It would surprise me if a new winery would have issues with doing native fermentations, maybe the grapes were washed during processing?
@KitMarlot We do add some Sulfur Dioxide when the grapes first get processed. It is to protect against mold developing on the must before the fermentation begins as it will sit for a few days (cold soak) before any fermentation activity begins and is fairly vulnerable for that time period.
If you just want wine info, skip this paragraph: I’m going to use my extremely limited platform here to remind everyone to get their annual skin exams. I lost a very dear friend at age 41 to melanoma about 3 weeks ago, and this holiday season feels so very empty without her. If you have a weird mole, get it in a jar and let the pathologist tell you it’s nothing.
Very rushed rattage, apologies. I’ll rant about UPS in the appropriate thread. Put it in the fridge to cool, pop n poor is a pleasant if somewhat heavy nose, you can smell the minerality. This isn’t a light weight wine. Initial sip, dry, crisp, excellent minerality on the back of the tongue/soft pallet, extremely smooth, none of the burn you get from high acidity wines. Very slight pithy tang but not unpleasantly so, this is more lemon/citrus than apple/stone fruit. Just a little yeast on the after taste. I’m making Christmas cookies, so no food pairings yet, but I’ll reply to this later tonight with more. Honestly, this is really good. I don’t like Sauv Blanc because I’m not a fan of the grassy/herbaceous notes that most have, this is nothing like a sauv to my pallet. It’s also not a buttery chard, so no worries there. This is probably a really good second step gateway wine for your friends who only like sparklers.
Great rattage and great vintner participation! I actually pulled the trigger on a case last night after reading reviews on CellarTracker and the text of the one shared above.
This certainly looks like a good deal. It inspired me to finally open one of my Qupé Roussannes from a year or so ago; SWMBO and I drinking now. Anyone have an idea how they would compare? With high acidity, is Roussanne naturally a food wine?
@PatrickKarcher
The acidity is less noticeable on this than the qupe. You don’t need food for this at all, as long as it’s on the cool side. The acidity started to be more forward as it warmed up, and I got more of the green apple tart. I prefer the citrus, so I’ll keep mine a few degrees cooler.
@mtb002@PatrickKarcher I don’t consider Roussanne to have much acidity at all - but it does have great texture from the higher level of dissolved solids in the skins of this variety. . .
This arrived last night but we couldn’t get to it till tonight. Generally whites aren’t my favorite and my experience beyond the typical whites is limited. This is a varietal I don’t believe I’ve had before.
PnP:
The color is a vibrant yellow in my too well lit kitchen. Almost a neon yellow tint. It looked a lot more like a nice golden straw color in my basement.
Initial bouquet: I got some lemon peel, faint grassiness, and some pineapple, but not sweet, more like pineapple rind. Husband said pear.
First taste: medium body, medium acidity and it’s not sweet like I expected. I taste some lemon and pear and it has a nice almost sour but not unpleasant finish. As it warmed up it seemed a tiny bit sweeter, but still not really sweet. More pear and pineapple.
Dinner tonight was lazy so meats and cheeses. It paired very nicely with aged cheddar and some sliced pork. But the real gem was a spicy red leister. The spice added a little something to the wine.
Whites still aren’t my thing, though Casemates does like to send me things I haven’t tried before to sort of prove that I do actually like some whites.
This is a good solid wine that I enjoyed quite a bit.
Y’all, I know this is not related to this particular offering but I was emptying out my case of wine that I got yesterday - and at the very bottom, under the last packing, there was a pack of Fleur de Sal dark chocolate caramels. I wonder how many of these I’ve missed. If I can say how much I love these chocolates…you can not know how happy my heart is right now!!!
@CruelMelody , i got the wineopener as well. Wish i could go back and check that box more thoroughly. I swear i was on woot yesterday looking for the last time fleur de sal was offered ( it was a while ago if yoy are interested!)
White Rhone varietals are a coming thing in California - and the Roussannes can be very good. We’re still at the stage where it’s uncommon enough that most of the fruit is good and most of the winemakers working with it are not making it as a ‘commodity’ wine the way Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc have become. We’ve seen good ones from Sonoma (many of us are fans of Peter Wellington’s Roussanne) and now from Lodi (think Sue Ann Tipton at Acquiesce) and Amador. Welcome to the party, Sosie!
Tasting Notes
Silver, San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
You don’t see Roussanne every day. Very little of it is grown in the US – less than 400 acres in all of California. And what there is is very fussy. Roussanne ripens very late and very unevenly. In a cool site such as Vivio, you might eek out two tons per acre if you’re lucky. In short, you really have to want it to grow it.
We most certainly do. Our version is at once savory and fruity, exotic and familiar. If those descriptors seem inconsistent, well, that’s Roussanne for you. On the nose, nectarine, pear and peach. The mouth follows suit but adds a sour orange flavor. As it warms up, you can taste mango and quince. The finish is minty and slightly herbal. Because of its high natural acidity, Roussanne offers the promise of long life. But that assumes you don’t drink it all before the next vintage.
Specifications
Included In The Box
Price Comparison
$494.45/case at Sonia Wines
About The Winery
Winery: Sonia Wines
We live in the bear state of California but are inspired by the wines of France. So we employ an old world approach to wine growing that favors restraint over ripeness, finesse over flamboyance. Our aim is to craft wines that show a kinship with those of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Loire and the Rhone. Wines that are their sosie. (Sosie – pronounced so-zee – is French for “double” or “look-alike”.)
We believe in hands-off wine making and limit our intervention to the absolute minimum. Our label often carries the term ‘No Amendments’. This means we did not add any acid, tannin, enzymes or any other kind of chemical besides a small amount of sulfur. We also use native yeasts whenever possible. As a result our wines are very vineyard and vintage expressive, which is what we feel wines should be. As we rely on natural acidity, we tend to pick earlier than most Sonoma and Napa wineries and thus tend toward lower alcohol than many. We also try to source our fruit from cool climate vineyards or those with a strong marine influence.
In selecting which wines to make, we decided not to make yet another Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay and instead showcase French varietals we love and are under-represented in California.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, KS, ME, MD, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OR, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Thursday, January 9th - Monday, January 13th
Sosie Roussanne
2 bottles for $39.99 $20/bottle + $4/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $139.99 $11.67/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2015 Sosie Roussanne
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2015 Sosie Roussanne - $100 = 41.66%
@chipgreen Wow, that’s a big case difference! One of the highest ever?
I’m supposed to rat this one, but I didn’t know it was coming and I don’t have this UPS thing figured out yet. I have to go get it from the distribution center tomorrow so I’ll try to have it out by tomorrow night.
From Terroirist (no idea)
Bold yellow color. Aromas pop with super tropical combos of pineapple, lychee, honey butter, almond, tropical flowers. Medium-bodied (only 12.9% alcohol) with moderating acidity, which really helps, and there’s a creamy, waxy texture. Flavors of yellow apples and pineapple, laced with floral potpourri, salted nuts, white tea, there’s some underlying mineral tones. Bold and tropical in flavors yet it’s nuanced and light on its feel – a nice combo to find in California Roussanne. Native yeasts, barrel fermented, all maloactic fermentation. (90 points IJB) 3/19
fwiw
oh, found this:
@kaolis I was just reading some patter on their website. Sounds like this could be pretty interesting, a more restrained approach.
Looking forward to those promised Rat TN’s, if we don’t have to scuttle the ship.
That case discount though!!!
Sounds really interesting…I don’t know if I’ve ever tried a Roussanne. Wife and I are neither Chardonnay fans; she prefers Marlborough Sauv Blancs, and I do like Marlborough Sauv Blancs, BUT I’m still searching for white varietals with a bit less acidity and more “structure” (for lack of a better word) that more closely matches my red-wine-preferential palette. The audio description saying this is between a Chard and a Sauv Blanc has me intrigued. Hoping for good rats!
@TimW roussanne is oftentimes referred to as the red wine drinker’s white wine. It usually hs wonderful texture but not a lot of acidity.
@tercerowines perfect! Case ordered!
Not sure if this helps anyone but I believe bottles of Roussanne showed up in a mixed case from Peter Wellington (Old Wine Woot ) and I enjoyed it. I’m not a big white lover and do not like heavily oaked Chards. Roussanne was a pleasant surprise, Id say a combo of Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc if memory serves.
Our favorite varietal, we are always up for a case.
I remember tasting a Roussanne when visiting Cass in Paso Robles 5 years or so years ago and really enjoying it. I’m not a big fan of many Chards, and it was a white that I really enjoyed.
Good morning!
I pick up the rat bottle of Sosie Roussanne last night from UPS.
PNP 45-50deg F:
Cork has minimal penetration, approx. 3mm. Color in glass is a very nice medium gold color. Picture is a bit lighter in color. Medium viscosity with legs take a very long time to form.
Nose is a bit restrained. Primarily getting lemon with faint smells green apple, a faint fresh herbal note (I can’t quite place), and wet gravel.
The wine is dry with medium to medium-high acidity. Alcohol seems low with a medium body that is similar to other roussannes I’ve tried. Flavors, like the nose, are predominately Meyer lemon with faint apricot and honeysuckle. The wine does a nice job of coating your pallet, with a bit more in the mid and back. There is a bit of mineral undertones to the wine that keep it crisp. Flavors linger 20-30 seconds.
After about an hour open at room temperature (wine 50-55deg F): Flavors are similar with some tart orange and mango sneaking in. Viscosity and acidity about the same.
Tried the wine with some mild hard white cheeses and baked crackers. These rounded out the mouthfeel and tamed the acidity. Honeysuckle was more prominent.
This is a good wine. A bit more restrained than the last bottle of Wellington Roussanne I had. That bottle had slightly more body and more stonefruit flavors.
The acidity makes this roussanne a good pairing with shell fish, white fish, and certain spicier dishes.
Saved ½ the bottle in the fridge for tonight. Hope to have better pairing to accompany this roussanne.
@mtnzj well done, thanks.
@mtnzj
Day 2: Not much change in the wine. Getting kid to bed late meant simple dinner of rotisserie chicken, simple mashed potatoes, and green beans. Same smell and taste. A bit more tangy. Food pairing was meh. Didn’t hide the wine flavors nor did it bring out anything interesting in the simple food.
Case price is a good QPR.
I had my first Roussanne & Marsanne nearly a decade ago through Wine Woot and then a bottle or two in the Wellington selloffs. Love every bottle I’ve had of this variety so far. Nuanced & complex is how I recall it, but I’m in need of a refresher. In for a case!
Hi All,
Scott with Sosie Wines here. I’m the owner/winemaker for Sosie wines. I’ll be checking forums as much as I can. Happy to answer questions about this wine or about anything else Sosie or Wine related.
Cheers.
@sosiescott Thanks for stopping by, Scott. I hope you will indulge some geeky questions about your winemaking processes. How do you go about inoculating the must with ‘native yeast’? Do you make a pied-à-terre or something similar before harvest, or do you have a ‘native yeast culture’ on hand or something else entirely? I know that the wild yeasts tend to live on the grape skins, but white wines tend to be pressed before fermentation begins. Also, could you comment on your malolactic fermentation? Does it just follow naturally from your native yeast inoculation, or do you have a separate malolactic culture? Some people (myself included) have reacted to the overprocessed Cali ‘buttery, oaky Chard’ and so treat malolactic in any white wine with suspicion. Is this just a ‘point grabbing winemaking’ issue and not a malolactic-specific issue? (Or is it a personal problem;)
@KitMarlot
With native (sometimes called wild) fermentation there is no inoculation step. The wine will pick up yeasts from the grape skins. Once the grapes are processed and the juice is released those yeasts will use the sugar as food and start to grow a population. Yeast populations double every 4 hours or so (depending on temperature) so it only takes a few days to reach a population large enough ferment the wine. Even with white wine which is pressed immediately and the skins discarded, those yeasts make it into the juice.
Typically a yeast called saccharomyces cerevisiae ferments wine but in those first few days other types of yeast strains are also involved, Kloeckera and Candida are two examples. This is what differentiates an inoculated fermentation in that these yeasts produce very different flavor profiles and give a wine more horizontal complexity. They are however not very alcohol tolerent and are killed off once the wine reaches 1 or 2% alcohol. With an inoculated fermentation the alcohol reaches those levels before those other yeasts can get going.
Eventually one yeast strain of saccharomyces cerevisiae will dominate and do the rest of the fermentation.
The Malolactic fermentation for us is also native. This is done by a bacteria called Oenococcus which is also found natively on grape skins. I prefer doing MLF natively as it takes longer to complete compared to inoculating. The longer the process takes, the later in wine lifestyle we can do the initial sulfur dioxide add which means lower total sulfur dioxide in the wine.
The buttery aspect of white wines is a direct result of MLF. The process creates a chemical called Diacetyl which is what produces that flavor.
Winemakers have a trick here though, Oenococcus will eat Diacetyl so after the MLF is complete we wait and taste and give the bacteria time to process the Diacetyl that was created. After a few months that butteriness is gone and that is when we do the initial Sulfur Dioxide add.
@KitMarlot @sosiescott
That’s super interesting, Scott! Thanks!
I’ve heard from other winemakers that different strains of malolactic bacteria also just produce different amounts of diacetyl overall, which can contribute to MLF not resulting in buttery wines.
Also, what are your thoughts on it truly being grape skin yeast vs winery-native yeast? I’ve heard more than one winemaker say they couldn’t get their “native” yeast fermentation to begin when they moved into a brand new and clean winery. Spontaneous fermentation in either case, to be sure, but I wonder if you have the same strains in all your wines even if they’re from different vineyards (which would, presumably, have different yeast strains around).
@sosiescott Wow, fantastic answer Scott. Thanks for taking the time to provide so much detail. Didn’t put it together that the ‘Buttery Chardonnay’ flavor was from diacetyl from incomplete MLF. Just to be clear, your must/wine doesn’t see any sulfur dioxide until the completion of all fermentation activities?
@klezman I don’t know that any malolactic bacteria strains are known to be lower diacetyl producers but it is possible. Most strains are selected to be viable in stressful environments like wines with high alcohol or very low PH’s (below 3.2). Native fermentations are challenging with those types of wines since the characteristics of the yeast/bacteria doing the fermentation is unknown.
As for where the yeast comes from with native fermentations, that is not an easy answer. Yeast is definitely coming in with the grapes and participate at some level in the fermentation. However the yeast in the winery (the house strain) most likely takes over at some point as it is probably a fairly robust strain that has adapted well to the environment.
It would surprise me if a new winery would have issues with doing native fermentations, maybe the grapes were washed during processing?
@KitMarlot We do add some Sulfur Dioxide when the grapes first get processed. It is to protect against mold developing on the must before the fermentation begins as it will sit for a few days (cold soak) before any fermentation activity begins and is fairly vulnerable for that time period.
If you just want wine info, skip this paragraph: I’m going to use my extremely limited platform here to remind everyone to get their annual skin exams. I lost a very dear friend at age 41 to melanoma about 3 weeks ago, and this holiday season feels so very empty without her. If you have a weird mole, get it in a jar and let the pathologist tell you it’s nothing.
Very rushed rattage, apologies. I’ll rant about UPS in the appropriate thread. Put it in the fridge to cool, pop n poor is a pleasant if somewhat heavy nose, you can smell the minerality. This isn’t a light weight wine. Initial sip, dry, crisp, excellent minerality on the back of the tongue/soft pallet, extremely smooth, none of the burn you get from high acidity wines. Very slight pithy tang but not unpleasantly so, this is more lemon/citrus than apple/stone fruit. Just a little yeast on the after taste. I’m making Christmas cookies, so no food pairings yet, but I’ll reply to this later tonight with more. Honestly, this is really good. I don’t like Sauv Blanc because I’m not a fan of the grassy/herbaceous notes that most have, this is nothing like a sauv to my pallet. It’s also not a buttery chard, so no worries there. This is probably a really good second step gateway wine for your friends who only like sparklers.
This looks nice and I’m short on whites, so in for a case!
Super fun seasonal order # crisp-happy-reindeer
Cheers!
Sounds interesting! Thanks to the rats!
Not typically a white wine guy, but nice to have some dryish whites on hand. Would be interested in a split if any PDX folks want in.
@cbrehman I would take 2 or 3 off your hands!
@CruelMelody Cool. I snagged a case. Happy to share if anyone else wants in!
@cbrehman awesome!
HIKING! VIKINGS! STRIKE KING [BRAND FISHING LURES]! AWESOME!
Great rattage and great vintner participation! I actually pulled the trigger on a case last night after reading reviews on CellarTracker and the text of the one shared above.
This certainly looks like a good deal. It inspired me to finally open one of my Qupé Roussannes from a year or so ago; SWMBO and I drinking now. Anyone have an idea how they would compare? With high acidity, is Roussanne naturally a food wine?
@PatrickKarcher
The acidity is less noticeable on this than the qupe. You don’t need food for this at all, as long as it’s on the cool side. The acidity started to be more forward as it warmed up, and I got more of the green apple tart. I prefer the citrus, so I’ll keep mine a few degrees cooler.
@mtb002 @PatrickKarcher I don’t consider Roussanne to have much acidity at all - but it does have great texture from the higher level of dissolved solids in the skins of this variety. . .
Anyone in or close to Ashland, OR want to split a case?
Pulled the trigger on a case if anyone in the Chicago area wants a couple.
@jshaver I’d be happy to take a few - how many are you willing to part with?
@kfroehlich I could do a split if you want 6.
@jshaver Thanks - I’ll take six.
/giphy cherished-bounteous-luge
Gee WineDavid, I would have loved to have heard about this one… #ilovewhiterhones
This arrived last night but we couldn’t get to it till tonight. Generally whites aren’t my favorite and my experience beyond the typical whites is limited. This is a varietal I don’t believe I’ve had before.
PnP:
The color is a vibrant yellow in my too well lit kitchen. Almost a neon yellow tint. It looked a lot more like a nice golden straw color in my basement.
Initial bouquet: I got some lemon peel, faint grassiness, and some pineapple, but not sweet, more like pineapple rind. Husband said pear.
First taste: medium body, medium acidity and it’s not sweet like I expected. I taste some lemon and pear and it has a nice almost sour but not unpleasant finish. As it warmed up it seemed a tiny bit sweeter, but still not really sweet. More pear and pineapple.
Dinner tonight was lazy so meats and cheeses. It paired very nicely with aged cheddar and some sliced pork. But the real gem was a spicy red leister. The spice added a little something to the wine.
Whites still aren’t my thing, though Casemates does like to send me things I haven’t tried before to sort of prove that I do actually like some whites.
This is a good solid wine that I enjoyed quite a bit.
Any San Diego interest? I love the case price but don’t think I could take more than 4-5 bottles myself.
@Sekraan I’ve got a case coming I was going to use for gifts, but if you want a few, and I can manage to get you what I already have for you.
@rjquillin That would be great. I could take fewer if you want more for gifts.
Bay Area split anyone ?
Y’all, I know this is not related to this particular offering but I was emptying out my case of wine that I got yesterday - and at the very bottom, under the last packing, there was a pack of Fleur de Sal dark chocolate caramels. I wonder how many of these I’ve missed. If I can say how much I love these chocolates…you can not know how happy my heart is right now!!!
@pienka that was my gift with the sangiovese too, along with a nice casemates ahso wine opener (to go with the screwcaps :))
@CruelMelody , i got the wineopener as well. Wish i could go back and check that box more thoroughly. I swear i was on woot yesterday looking for the last time fleur de sal was offered ( it was a while ago if yoy are interested!)
@CruelMelody @pienka
I just bought some on 11/10…
White Rhone varietals are a coming thing in California - and the Roussannes can be very good. We’re still at the stage where it’s uncommon enough that most of the fruit is good and most of the winemakers working with it are not making it as a ‘commodity’ wine the way Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc have become. We’ve seen good ones from Sonoma (many of us are fans of Peter Wellington’s Roussanne) and now from Lodi (think Sue Ann Tipton at Acquiesce) and Amador. Welcome to the party, Sosie!