The ‘Chicken-Wine’ is back and kickin’

The Wine Warehouse wine blog comes to you today from the center of Bordeaux after several days at Vinexpo. Vinexpo meets every two years in Bordeaux and is billed as the world’s largest wine and spirits fair. It takes one more than twenty minutes to walk the length of the main hall. In addition there are four rows in this main hall with two other halls for the overflow of producers. Do you think that this means that there is plenty of wine out there in the world? So far this year’s Vinexpo highlights include: a wicked storm with hail in downtown Bordeaux on Sunday night as most people were finishing dinner and trying to get back to their rooms at around 11PM, cooler weather than was experienced during the 115 degree days at Vinexpo 2003 and sadly the South African wineries not receiving their samples until after the third day of the show. The standard line at the South African stand was ‘my wines are the best South African wines that you’ve never tasted.’

The level of wine industry elite is quite high at Vinexpo. Jean-Pierre Perrin is a top producer from Chateauneuf du Pape and personally poured for me his Chateau de Beaucastel offerings as well as others from the Perrin family of wines. I commented to Jean-Pierre that their La Vieille Ferme wines have really taken off in our stores since they changed the label to include the Gallic rooster. Customers come into our stores and just simply ask for ‘the chicken wine.’ Jean-Pierre just smiled and said that this phenomenon exists in other countries as well. There may be a degree of intimidation in asking for and trying to pronounce ‘La Vieille Ferme’ but there is certainly no pressure in asking for ‘the chicken wine’ in one’s native tongue.

John-Pierre’s sons Pierre and Marc Olivier with Francois’ oldest son Thomas are the sixth generation of Perrin’s at Beaucastel and have the Perrin family of wines currently running at the top of their game. The Perrin family likes to think of themselves as THE Southern Rhone specialists. It is easy to see why they feel this way as they are proprietors of what many feel is the finest estate in the finest appellation in the southern Rhone, Chateauneuf du Pape with Chateau de Beaucastel. The Perrins are also continuing to purchase some of the finest properties in other top regions in the southern Rhone.

On to ‘the chicken wine.’ La Vieille Ferme literally translates to ‘the old farm’ however there is nothing ‘old’ or particularly traditional about these wines. The LVF label has moved from an abstract drawing of and old farm, to a Provencal theme and now to ‘the chicken.’ The package is modern with expressive labels, uses progressive screw cap closures that are built for speed and are filled with exuberant and flavorful wine in the bottle. We at The Wine Warehouse have the best prices in Florida on ‘the chicken wine.’ As you walk our shelves you will find that this is a recurring pattern when you look at our other selections as well.

The La Vielle Ferme Blanc is produced from grapes grown in Provence near the town where Peter Mayle wrote his book ‘A Year in Provence.’ LVF white is a blend of Grenache Blanc, Bourbelenc, Ugni Blanc and Roussanne that are grown at 1000 feet above sea level. LVF white wine displays hints of pear and green apple with a medium bodied texture. It is soft, balanced and a beautiful quaff.

La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Luberon Blanc 1.5L, Retail $13.99 Warehouse $9.99
La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Luberon Blanc 750ml, Retail $7.99 Warehouse $5.99

The La Vieille Ferme Rose is produced from grapes grown just east of the southern tip of the Cotes du Rhone. This Rose is a blend of Cinsault, Grenache and Syrah. A vibrant strawberry hue shines as spicy strawberry and floral notes jump from the glass. Dry Roses are an emerging category as they are a fantastic bridge between red and white wines. This Rose shows relatively complex characters for its incredibly low price.

La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rose 750ml, Retail $7.99 Warehouse $5.99

Also from the Cotes du Ventoux, La Vieille Ferme Red is produced from Grenache, Syrah, Carignan and Cinsault. A perennial ‘best red wine value on the planet,’ this Cotes du Ventoux sports a deep cherry red color with ripe and spicy red fruit characters. It continues to amaze me how the Perrin family is able to offer so much character every single year in this red wine for the small amount of money that they charge.

La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rouge 1.5L, Retail $13.99 Warehouse $9.99
La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rouge 750ml, Retail $7.99 Warehouse $5.99

The Perrin Cotes du Rhone Blanc is a fresh and a delightfully complex white wine. It is produced from Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Marsanne and Roussanne. This CDR Blanc is produced in stainless steel to highlight the primary fruit aromas and flavors of these varieties. On the palate this CDR offers a medium bodied and slightly oily texture and would be a great choice for those of you who lean towards un-oaked Chardonnay as the CDR’s texture and purity are the same. Unlike a Chardonnay, this wine will not have a tropical character but offers aromas and flavors of pear, lemon and a hint of flowers. Bottled in stelvin for freshness.

Perrin Cotes du Rhone Blanc 750ml, Retail $10.99 Warehouse $7.99

Perrin Cotes du Rhone Rouge is a sturdy red value that is produced strictly from vineyards that the Perrin family either own or from vineyards where they control the grape growing. This CDR is produced from traditional Grenache Noir that offers raspberry and pepper notes with nearly half the blend being fleshed out with Syrah and Mourvedre for added intensity and a spicy leather and meaty character. Bottled in stelvin for freshness.

Perrin Cotes du Rhone Rouge 750ml, Retail $10.99 Warehouse $7.99

Patchouli alert! We have a spicy and expressive Cotes du Rhone red wine produced from organically grown grapes. The Perrin’s call this wine ‘Nature’ as this is the way that they feel nature intended plants to grow. The Perrin’s farm all of their estate wines without chemical herbicides and pesticides. This Cotes du Rhone is produced from predominantly Grenache Noir. It has a spicy and peppery raspberry character with an inherent meatiness in its core. You can experience all of this for less than nine bucks. Whoa dude!

Perrin 'Nature' Cotes du Rhone Rouge 750ml, Retail $11.99 Warehouse $8.99

Vacqueyras is one of the appellations in the southern Rhone that is allowed to put its town’s name on the label. The Perrin’s Vacqueyras vineyard is a special one as it is blessed with vines that average fifty years of age of 75% Grenache Noir and 25% Syrah. These old vines tend to produce less quantity for grapes that have more intensity and complexity. It is virtually unheard of for a Vacqueyras to receive a 91 point score in a review, but the Perrin 2005 ‘Les Christins’ did just that in The Wine Spectator magazine. This wine is extremely limited due to its small production.

Perrin ‘Les Christins’ Vacqueyras 2005, Retail $21.99 Warehouse $18.99

The proprietors from Chateau de Beaucastel certainly know a thing or two about producing Chateaneuf du Pape. The Perrin “Les Sinards’ CDP is produced from younger vines at Beaucastel as well as being sourced from a neighboring vineyard just west of the estate. Vinified in the same manner as Beaucastel, Perrin CDP is produced predominantly from the traditional Grenache Noir grape with Syrah and Mourvedre combining to give it a deep and rich red color, with aromas ranging from lavender to kirsch and pepper, on the palate meaty, raspberry and pepper notes ring through.

Perrin ‘Les Sinards’ Chateauneuf du Pape 2004, Retail $29.99 Warehouse $24.99

The Perrin family is extremely friendly, enormous talented and are hard not to like. You’ll see the same character in the wines that they produce.

I know that it seems a bit silly to be blogging from Bordeaux and not include some wines from Bordeaux. Don’t worry, Bordeaux wines will be coming shortly to a blog near you.

A bientot,

Monsier Bloggy