As you may have heard, the Summer Olympics start later this week. And just in case you have been lucky enough to miss the non-stop ads promoting this event for the past few years, the Olympics will be held in Paris. So this week, I figured why not recommend a few great French wines to celebrate the occasion? Or to be more precise, I decided to recommend five types of French wines (and a recommended wine for each type) in honor of the five rings in the iconic Olympic symbol.
For each wine type, I have recommended a specific wine from one of the best regions in France that produces that wine. In addition, you can find information about any Olympic events being held in the wine-growing region where that wine is from in France. Hope you enjoy.
5 French Olympic Wines Sparkling Wine This is the easiest one. When it comes to French sparkling wine, this conversation basically starts and ends with Champagne . Yes, there are definitely many great sparkling wines from France.
But for many people, the best French sparkling wine comes from Champagne (regular readers have heard this spiel before – Champagne can only come from Champagne) made using the traditional method. Recommended wines: There are so many outstanding Champagnes – from familiar ones from large Champagne houses, including Taittinger Brut La Francaise Champagne ($64.99 at Table & Vine in West Springfield) and Champagne Louis Roederer Collection 244 ($59.
99 at Table & Vine) to many so-called “grower” Champagnes from smaller producers. Whichever Champagne you choose, you honestly can’t go wrong. Just make sure you get a “brut” style one since they’re dry, crisp and refreshing.
Olympic sports: If you were hoping to watch Olympians competing in France’s Champagne region, you’re out of luck. But don’t worry. I can guarantee there will likely be lots of Champagne bottles featured in the Olympic celebrations.
I just hope those athletes don’t waste too much delicious Champagne by spraying it all over the place. Rose Wine Here again, if you’re looking for great rose wine, simply head straight to the magical Provence region in the south of France. While I still find it hard to believe, rose wines in general still sometimes face an uphill battle from some wine people who dismiss them as “pool wine” or “beach wine.
” But when done right, rose wines can be just as delicious and distinct as any great wine. And in recent years, Provence has perfected the art of making great rose wine. Recommended wine: There are so many great Provence rose wines.
One producer from Provence that consistently makes great roses is Commanderie de Peyrassol . Like other Provence roses, their elegant, expressive wines are made with a blend of several grapes (it’s required for all Provence rose wines) and range in price from roughly $18 to $50 a bottle for their outstanding rose wines. Olympic sports: You’re in luck, sailing and soccer fans.
Provence can be found right between two French coastal cities – Nice and Marseille. Nice will host several Olympic soccer matches. (It’s a beautiful stadium you can easily reach by public transportation just on the outskirts of downtown Nice.
) The charming, hard-working seaside city of Marseille will host soccer and sailing events. White Wine The obvious choice for some French white wine fans would be Burgundy and its world-renowned chardonnay wines. But there’s definitely also something to be said for crisp, dry, refreshing white wines from France’s Loire Valley.
A few weeks ago, I recommended several outstanding sauvignon blancs from France’s Loire Valley . So this week, I thought I might focus on another great white wine grape often found in the same area – chenin blanc. And in particular, Vouvray.
Recommended wine: The name Vouvray refers to two things – where the wine comes from and the style of wine. The Vouvray wine region is located within the Loire Valley. The name also refers to the distinct, dry, mineral-rich white wine that comes from Vouvray.
Again, all Vouvrays are made with chenin blanc grapes. There are several great Vouvrays. One of my favorites is Champalou Vouvray ($25 Suggested Retail Price ), a crisp, floral, slightly lemon-like wine.
Olympic sports: The Loire Valley will host one sporting event during this summer’s Olympics – football (aka soccer) at the stadium in Saint-Etienne, a small city close to Lyon. Red Wine I’m not going to get into the whole debate over which French wine region produces the best red wines. Some are on Team Bordeaux and its elegant, regal, blended red wines.
Others support Team Burgundy and rave about their subtle, out-of-this-world pinot noirs. Personally, I love both. And if you’re looking for another great French red wine region, head further south to the Rhone region.
Recommended wine: One of the great things about France’s Rhone region – especially the southern part of this region near Avignon – is how many outstanding, affordable red wines you can find from here. And one of the best ones to start with is the E. Guigal Cotes Du Rhone Rouge ($14.
99 at Table & Vine) . This blended red wine consistently tastes great year in and year out. It’s full, flavorful and goes great with grilled meats or on its own.
It’s truly one of the best wine bargains around. Olympic sports: As you might have guessed, if you want to watch Olympic events in the Rhone region, get ready to watch more soccer. That’s because the city of Lyon is the only place in the Rhone region serving as a host city for this summer’s Olympics.
Dessert Wine Now that you’ve made you way through this movable feast in France, it’s time for one last wine – a dessert wine. And when it comes to French dessert wines, my favorite is Sauterne. Like Vouvray, Sauterne refers to where the wine comes from (the Sauterne region in Bordeaux) and the style of wine.
The grapes used to make these slightly-sweet dessert wines (mostly semillon with some sauvignon blanc mixed in) have nothing to do with the name of the wine. Recommended wine: One of the tricky things about Sauternes is they need a lot of time to age. So even if you find one, you might have to wait a decade or more to truly enjoy it.
So perhaps you can buy one now and open it when you’re watching the Olympics in 2044 when robots are running circles around us. And while you can spend a lot of money on Sauternes, two great affordable ones are 2005 Chateau Rieussec ($49.99 at Table & Vine for a half bottle) and 2005 Chateau Suduiraut ($99.
99 at Table & Vine for a half bottle) . The 2005 vintage is great and will drink well for the next 20 years. Serve slightly chilled in small glasses.
Olympic sports: Hope you love soccer, because the city of Bordeaux will feature Olympic football matches at its stadium in the center of town. Cheers! Wine Press by Ken Ross appears on Masslive.com every Monday and in The Republican’s Weekend section every Thursday.
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