In France, any brandy (Distillation of Wine)
which is not a Cognac or an Armagnac, but from
another region is called a Fine
(Fine d'Alsace, Fine de Côtes du Rhône, Fine de
Bourgogne, Fine de
Champagne, etc....)
Sadly, they
have been dwarfed by the big bully Cognac and its
little brother Armagnac, and some have
disappeared, some are endangered, and some
survive, with difficulty.
It is a pity, that their reputation has been
lost over the centuries, because the remnants we
discover are absolutely brilliant. Of course
we are not talking of brandies made for the
purpose of fortifying wine, which being
good at that, are not great on their own
(Portugal, Spain, and Italy to some extent), but
of Fines which easily challenge great Cognacs and
Armagnacs, and still are very different, original,
and terroir related.
Our latest discovery has been a
"1994 Fine de Chateauneuf Du
Pape" from the Chateau
de La Nerthe, famous for their
wines. Bottled in March 2007 it is at the best of
its maturation.
This has to be added to the 2 other
Fines: The"Fine du
Languedoc" from La Croix Belle with
its Mediterranean overtones, distilled from
sauvignon blanc wines and the
"Fine de Côtes du
Rhône" from Chapoutier in the
northern Rhône with shiraz/viognier
wines.
|
 1994 Fine de
Chateauneuf du Pape
From Chateau de La
Nerthe
500ml -40% -$120 (GST
included)
Inspired by the decree of the
appellation governing "Eau de vie des Côtes du
Rhône", La Nerthe revived a forgotten tradition.
The Château now produces "Fine de
Châteauneuf-du-Pape", a vintage eau de vie
distilled from wines that have successfully
passed the dégustation d'agrément, the tasting
permitting a wine to be classified as an AOC
Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
Distillation is in
three phases: the head, the heart of the
distillation and the tails. Only the heart,
which attains 70% alcohol and represents the
best quality of the distillation is retained for
this eau de vie. It is matured in small barrels
of Limousin oak for a minimum of five years.
Thanks to evaporation through the wood
barrels during the ageing process (called
poetically "la part des anges" - the angel's
share), and due to the repeated addition of
small quantities of distilled water, the alcohol
content is progressively brought down to 40 %.
Simultaneously, the wood imparts a superb
color of light oak and a palette of complex
aromas of raisins, hazelnuts, port and rum: in
the mouth there is a beautiful balance and
flavors of oak, spices and butter.
www.chateaudelanerthe.fr
|
|
 Fine du
Languedoc from Croix Belle
500ml
-42% -8 years- $80 (GST
included)
Vinification:
Eau
de Vie de Vin du Languedoc Vin de pays Sauvignon
Blanc and Languedoc Distillation (in
column).
Tasting Notes:
Distinguished
amber colour, with tears along the sides of the
glass.
Soft and delicate
nose with varying aromas
of vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, exotic and dry
fruits.
Swirling it in the
glass will release a blend of
hazelnut, orange zest as well as "garrigue" aromas
(garrigue= wild bushes of thymes, rosemary and
other Mediterranean herbs).
Surprising freshness in the
mouth, slightly minty, with notes of
hazelnut and walnut blended with thyme, as well as
sweet spices (cinnamon, vanilla) and candied
orange.Nice, long and velvety, complex as
well.
|
Fine de Côtes du Rhône from
Chapoutier
700ml-42%-25 years-$95 (GST included)
Vinification:
From
shiraz/ viognier
grapes | |
