Day 1 - Chateau Massamier La Mignarde and Savoy Wines

Today was our first day in France, and we hit the country tasting. After about 11 hours of flying, layovers, and bus rides we made it to our hotel, Chateau de Lignon.

(Photos to come - we arrived in light rain, unfortunately!) We had one hour to freshen up then we were off to Chateau Massamier la Mignarde.

According to our host and guide Dan Kravitz, the chateau was an old Roman villa, and has been housing residents since 200 B.C.

To the right is a picture of the winery's dog, Pasha, in front of the villa.

We tasted 13 wines with the owner Frantz Vènes, who is shown in the pictures bringing out fresh salami and prosciutto for us to snack on while tasting.

Here's a list of what we tasted and what we think is worth you tasting:

1. 2009 Cuvee des Amandiers Blanc:
This light and fruity white resembles a Sauvignon Blanc

2. 2009 Cuvee des Amandiers Rose:
Apple and floral nose, very pleasant and flavorful

3. 2009 Cuvee des Oliviers Rose:
This is a slightly upscale version of the Amandiers Rose, and is an estate wine. It breaks down to being 80% Cinsaut, 10% Grenache and 10% Syrah

4. 2008 Cuvee des Amandiers Rouge:
Wood and berry nose, with a light palate

5. 2007 Mourrel Azurat Fitou:
This wine gets its name from the Catalon words for blue mountain. Fitou is known as the "schizophrenic Appalachian" as Kravitz said. Half of Fitou falls on the Mediterranean coast, then about 20 miles inland it becomes another piece of land, and about 20 miles more inland it becomes Fitou again.

6. 2007 Chateau Massamier Minervois Tradition Rouge:
'07 is known to be a good vintage for this region of France, and the Tradition is a fine example with wood and fruit nose, and black fruits on the palate

7. 2007 Chateau massamier Minervois Cuvee Aubin:
This is an upscale oak age Minervois. There's very small barrel aging, and Massamier uses all concrete tanks. The breakdown is 50% Grenache, 25% Syrah, and 25% Carignan

8. 2008 Domaine Massamier 'Expression' Carignan:
Frantz's grandfather first planted these grapes in 1947/1948 just after World War II. It's 100% press wine, the result of whole cluster fermentation. They bottle this wine very young, sometime between January and March. We actually tasted the '08 because they did not make enough for an '09 vintage.

9. 2007 Chateau massamier La Liviniere 'Domus Maximus':
Perhaps the crowd favorite, this wine has been awarded the prestigious titles of 'Best red in Southern France,' 'Best French Wine,' and 'Best Syrah/Grenache in the World.' It's 80% Syrah, 20% Grenache and retails at about $59 a bottle.

10. 2007 Chateau Massamier La Liviniere 'Tenement de Garouilhas':
This was a wine of Frantz's dreams, literally. He came up with the idea and produced the first vintage in 2001. 'Tenament de Garouilhas' translates into "the place of Garouilhas," which is the vineyard. It's 60% Syrah, 20% Grenache, and 20% Carignan.
Frantz says he tries to put Grenache with Syrah whenever possible. This wine requires them to put the pressed juice inside the berries, and undergo carbonic maceration before it finishes in oak barrels.

11. 2008 Chateau Massamier Minervois Tradition Blanc:
Gold in color with an apple nose, and tart, tropical fruits on the palate

12. 2009 Chateau Massamier Minervois Tradition Rose:
Concentrated fruit, and an overall pleasant and fresh wine

13. 2008 Cuvee des Oliviers Rouge:
Chateau Massamier la Mignarde claims to be the first to combine the Cabernet and Sauvignon grapes in the Languedoc region.

After staying longer than expecting we headed back on the bus for the hotel. We met with two young owners of Les Rocailles, Savoie. A brief overview of what we tasted, ranked from our favorite on:

**********Brut des Rocailles
*********2008 Chignin - Bergeron
********2008 Roussette
*******2009 Apremont (most popular wine)
******2009 Gamay Rose
*****Caprice des Rocailles
****2008 Mondeuse Arbin
***2009 Pinot Noir
**2009 Mondeuse
*Quintessence des Rocailles

All of these wines except for the Apremont are hand harvested. Some, but not all of the Apremont is.

It was finally time for dinner, which we enjoyed lavishly at the restaurant. Surrounded my modern artwork, the presentation on the plate followed suit. Our first course was,

Dome de volaille au coeur de foie gras, Tremeuss de carottes au curcuma et sauce morille
Foie gras enclosed by chicken, and drizzled with a mushroom sauce

The second course was,

Lave de maigre juste poele, Exrasee de pomme de terre charlotte, Herbe et pignons, Creme de radis au raifort, Et jus de viande auss capres
A white fish with potatoes and sour cream, with a carrot puree

We had an option of fresh cheeses or dessert for the third course, both delicious. The dessert,

Entremet cremeuss passion, Mousse framboise et sorbet escotique
Passion fruit cake with raspberry mousse and citrus sorbet

Needless to say we're very full, and very tired - but nonetheless fascinated by southern France's vast countryland, and abundant wines. See you tomorrow!