Saturday Wine Tasting 2-4pm
Natural French Wines from Small Producers of Loire Valley, Cotes du Duras and More!
French Wine Tasting
Le Petit Bijou
Saturday, Feb 25th 2-4pm
*Our original location- 103 North Side Square*
$20 Per Person (Wine Tasting Only)
Reservations Requested. Call 256-964-7980
Presented by special guests,
Ricardo Ponce of Alternative Wines
2021 Delecheau Trinq'ames Sauvignon Blanc, Loire Valley, France $22.99
Trinqu'âmes is a very cute pun which means "Let's toast to our souls." It is what Sauvignon de Touraine should taste like! This wine made under the négoce label of Coralie & Damien Delecheneau: for a couple of years now they have been buying organic grapes at the right price from neighbors they helped with the farming transition. This is great négoce wine. The vineyards are located in a perfect spot for Sauvignon Blanc: between Amboise and Oisly, the sandy silex rich soil over clay allows a ripe expression of the grape with loosing its vibrancy. The grapes are hand-harvested with Damien's supervision, pressed directly, settled overnight than fermented spontaneously. The wine is aged in cement for 6 months before being lightly filtered. Sage, lemongrass, and Tahitian grapefruit on the nose, with hints of white pepper and passion fruit. 100% Sauvignon Blanc.
2018 Haut Lavigne White, Cote de Duras, France $19.99
Varieties: 66% Sauvignon Blanc, 34% Semillon
Greenish straw in the glass with scents of apricot, flowers, warm almond skins and beeswax. The bright palate offers up melon and citrus fruit with a thick core of white pit fruit minerality and herbaceous acidity. This blend has terrific concentration and outstanding balance.
Nadia Lusseau created Château Haut Lavigne in 2002 when she took over 8.5-hectares of vineyards in the Cotes de Duras. The vineyard is made up of 4-hectares of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, plus 4.5-hectares of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Cotes de Duras is located approximately 100 kilometers from the Atlantic and benefits from the ocean air while enjoying less rain, therefore more sunshine, than appellations further to the west. Nadia’s viticultural approach results in top-quality fruit and her winemaking allows for a true expression of terroir. She has been farming organically since 2005 all of her vines were certified organic in 2006. Nadia Lusseau represents a younger generation of women winemakers working in France whose informed approach and deft touch are yielding outstanding results.
2021 Patience White, France $17.99
Grenache Blanc, Chardonnay, Vermentino. The cuvées that Christophe makes for Jenny & Francois come either from his own (organic certified), or purchased (sustainable / practicing organic) grapes and, depending on the wine, are made with indigenous or neutral yeast, vegan-friendly fining, light filtration and as little sulfur as possible.
Organic-certified wines across the Costières de Nîmes and Coteaux du Pont du Gard, two neighboring AOCs with distinctive terroirs and a lingering scent of La Patience, the wild, aromatic Mediterranean herb that gave its name to the estate.
2020 La Grange Tiphaine Clef de Sol Montlouis White, Loire Valley, France $37.99
100% Chenin Blanc from Amboise in the Loire Valley. This bottle is from a warm vintage which gives it a beautiful texture and complexity. It’s on the fruity side, with good freshness and acidity. This Chenin Blanc will beautifully match creamy dishes and any white meat.
La Grange Tiphaine is the 17 hectare domaine of Damien and Coralie Delecheneau in the Loire Valley. Damien and Coralie both studied oenology and viticulture in Bordeaux, then headed overseas to expand their knowledge through work with wineries in California and South Africa. They returned to France in 2002 to take over Damien’s familial domaine in Amboise. Damien is the fifth generation to farm this land, but he and Coralie set out with an entirely different aim. They embarked on a mission to convert to organic production, then biodynamic, and expanded westward by adding parcels in Montlouis-Sur-Loire.
2019 La Grange Tiphaine Clef de Sol Touraine Red, Loire Valley, France $37.99
60 year old vines in the Touraine-Ambois. 65% Cab Franc and 35% Malbec (Cot) fermented in concrete and aged in barrels. Light and fruit driven with a good driving acidity that allows the fresh berries to percolate. ORGANIC
2020 Delecheau Ad Libitum Rouge, Loire Valley, France $22.99
A lively blend of cot (malbec), gamay and cabernet franc. Just five months in tank, loads of raspberry fruit, and an appealingly bright purple color. Made by natural winemaking superstars Damien and Coralie Delecheneau.
2020 Chateau Tire Pe Bordeaux Rouge, Bordeaux, France $25.99
David and Hélène Barrault took over this small vineyard in ’97. Blessed with rich clay and limestone soils this vineyard possesses fantastic southern exposures and overlooks the Gironde River. The chateau takes its name from a colorful local tale about what small animals “leave behind” before climbing the Tire Pé hill. The Barrault’s farm ten to fifteen year-old vines organically and great care is taken to gently extract the supple fruit and terroir, that Bordeaux is so well known for, into each cuvee they produce.
Certification: Practicing organic since 2008, and officially converting since 2011 (ECOCERT)
Deep ruby in the glass with red currant, blackberry, bramble and pounded stones. Ripe red and black fruit dominates the palate that gets a nice boost from the wines natural acidity. This is a buoyant and easy drinking red that finishes with light tannins.
