Digging into the backstory of this wine makes us want to book a flight to Provence. We’d land in Marseille, knock around the Old Port (its restaurant scene is said to be one of France’s hippest), then grab a car for a trip north into the Alps. We’re conditioned to think ‘Mediterranean’ when we think of Provence, but there are mountains, too, rising rather quickly once you’ve left the coastal cities behind. This offer from Domaine la Blaque brings us to the out-of-the-way AOC Pierrevert, in France’s southeast corner, to beautifully positioned vineyards in the foothills of the Maritime Alps.
In one direction is the Côte d’Azur, in the other, Alpine skiing—not a bad place to make wine, or to visit someone who does. La Blaque’s 2014 Pierrevert, from a predominance of Syrah, is a fragrant, savory, cashmere-textured snapshot of this unique place in the wine world. We fell for it immediately, then we heard the price, and a full-blown love affair had begun. It is a deeply satisfying mid-winter red and ready to drink now—bring on the aprés-ski burgers!
This 2014 is rather inky in the glass, a rich purple-black that would seem to announce a monolith, but in fact the wine is neither massive nor in any way raisined. The nose is a dense tangle of blackberry, plum, black currant, licorice, lavender, dried herbs, and a touch of the bacon fat one sometimes finds in Northern Rhône Syrah. On the palate it is mouth-coatingly rich, satisfying, but with no off-putting sweetness/over-ripeness. There’s enough acid and some beautifully wooly tannins keeping this wine nicely composed; it finishes clean, with a kiss of dark chocolate and more florals and some warm spice. It’s a straight-up yummy, lip-smacking red wine that drinks well right out of the bottle; decanting never hurts but I don’t think it’s necessary here. Serve this in Bordeaux stems at around 65 degrees alongside something classically Provençal like this Lamb Daube. It’s the next-best thing to hopping on a plane!