Famille Perrin, Côtes du Rhône Villages, 2010

Nothing is better than finding a $10 wine that drinks like something more expensive, and this one does. The Famille Perrin line is from the fabulous house Château de Beaucastel, crafter of some great Châteauneuf-du-Pape and some high-end Côtes du Rhône Villages, the latter costing you close to $40.

The Famille Perrin line retains that richness and earthy quality with a nose filled with cinnamon and dark chocolate. The fruit is subtle and lightly hoisted on a mineral beam that gives a clean finish with smooth tannin. It's cherry, but it's not. It's cassis, but it's not. Currant, perhaps, but it's not. Delightful, it is! This is a great wine for a party because it won't cost you a lot to impress your guests.

This is a great bargain. I score it 8.5 using my scale at the left.

Three grapes of deliciousness

There's a wide selection of wines that do well with lamb. Many will think of Brunello di Montalcino, and Borolo is a good choice as well. But the wines of the Southern Rhône are exceptional matches with lamb. And there’s such variety! Recently I prepared a boneless leg of lamb stuffed with goat cheese and spinach, served with the 2007 Domaine les Aphillanthes Côte du Rhône-Villages Cuvée 3 Cépages.

Despite my fail on the entrée – the rolled lamb came undone in the oven and overcooked a bit – this Côte du Rhône-Villages matched wonderfully with the lamb, goat cheese and spinach. Domaine les Aphillanthes has produced some great wines over the years, most scored in the high 80s and low to mid 90s by Wine Spectator. It has delicious fruit that comes across smooth, velvety, with just the right amount of tannin giving it a long, memorable finish.

The name 3 Cépages refers to the three grapes used in this blend: Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre. The 2009 currently out is highly rated as well and you ought to be able to find it for less that the suggested $25 retail price. I paid $16 for the 2007, which was rated 91 by WS.

I rate this with a 9 using my scale at the left.

Despite the over-doneness of the lamb, the leftovers made excellent stew. As I revealed here, the secret to great lamb stew is the wine you use to cook with. With this particular batch, I used a 2009 Ventoux, an appellation in the Southern Rhône. The Cuvée des 3 Messes Basses is an inexpensive blend that you ought to find for about $10. It’s good drinking on its own, but it was also great in this stew. Of course, nothing comes close to the batch I made with a 2004 Châteauneuf-du-Pape. That was one awesome stew!

Sablet

Ah, the Rhône, that region of France from whence my favorite wines come. And a locale in the Southern Rhône that I am finding intriguing is the appellation Côte du Rhône Villages.

One of the villages in this area is Sablet, which interestingly was lucky enough during the Plague to be spared, escaping the disease virtually untouched.

Among the producers there is Domaine de Piaugier, whose Sablet Rouge is a blend of just Grenache and Syrah. The wine has received erratic scores over the years, everywhere from the mid 70s to the mid 80s. Apparently, the producer is better known for its Gigondas, which is regularly of higher quality, according to Parker.

The 2007 was good, but unremarkable in my view. The nose was delicious, but when tasted, there just wasn’t any follow-through. It wasn’t awful at $15, but I probably won’t buy from this producer again.

I rate this with a 6.5 using my scale at the left.