Author Archives: waywardwine

About waywardwine

Follow Wayward Wine (WSET3) to tour the world's exciting vineyards, breweries, and distilleries, while discovering new drinks.

Graves Open Doors 3: Château Caillivet in Bordeaux

Posted on February 3, 2014 by waywardwine

Today continues our exploration of Graves: Bordeaux’s diverse, left-bank, value region that struggles in the shadow of famed and pricier Haut-Médoc. A white van has toured us around the village of Langon, visiting its wineries for free (this is an EU Austerity Drinking Tour after all).

We leave “Château” la Croix’s rustic charm. A new driver asks for our next winery. The local girls say something. I blankly agree. But my wife’s glare cuts me down.

“They don’t like you”, she growls. “I know. But it doesn’t really matter which winery we go to.” “Yes, but you choose one, they don’t want us around”. “Fine”. Angry, tipsy, and both of us sick and stuffy we continue to whisper/fight. Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chateau Caillivet, Château la Croix, France, Haut-Médoc, Langon, Medoc, merlot, Oak, wine | 5 Comments

Torbreck, Cuvée Juveniles, Barossa Valley, Australia 2010

Posted on January 30, 2014 by waywardwine

Forget Yellowtail. Forget Crocodile Dundee. Forget everything you know about Australia.

Instead, put your mind in Paris. Get off at the Pyramide Metro, not far from the Louvre. Wiggle your way to 47 rue de Richelieu, and then, behold: Juveniles:

Now think of Scotland. Because inside you will find fantastic British farmhouse cheese, charcuterie, and Haggis always on the menu. Tim Johnston, a Scot ex-pat, founded it decades ago.

But now, turn to South East France, because Juveniles is a wine bar, and gained its cult following for pouring the Rhône Valley’s best wines. But then, Tim shocked Paris. He poured Australian Shiraz.

Your head may be spinning, but follow the thread. Australia grows Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, and other varietals typical of the Rhône Valley. Many vines predate the French (thanks to dodging phyloxera). And what would pair better with haggis for cult Rhône drinkers than Shiraz. Continue reading →

Posted in EMPTIED BOTTLES, Grenache | Tagged Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley, Craig Isbel, Dave Powell, David Powell, Grenache, haggis, Juveniles, Juveniles Bar, Mouvedre, Paris, Shiraz, Syrah, Tim Johnston, Torbreck | 1 Comment

Getting Dirty in Graves: Château la Croix

Posted on January 27, 2014 by waywardwine

We pick up last Monday’s EU Austerity Drinking Tour post south of Bordeaux, sick, but thirsty. Our free, Open Doors, van tour of Graves had started decently. Château Pont de Brion let us taste a mini-enprimeur of 2012’s just-harvested varietals. They were tidy, well-branded, but too clean to be outstanding. Then I kicked a dog (accidentally), and they kicked us out.

Today, our van bounces to its next stop: Château la Croix.

The word Châteaux clearly gets applied to anything in Bordeaux. A child plays with gravel in the driveway. A stable-winery glares orange. The center tree shades a large, black dog who greets with a lazy bark.

But superficiality be damned. We came for wine, not glamor. Our van clatters off, leaving us and three, twenty-something ladies in the parking lot. Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bordeaux, Botrytis cyneria, dessert, France, Garonne, grapes, Graves, malbec, Muscadelle, Petite Verdot, Sauternes, Sauvignon blanc, Semillon, wine, wine tour | 4 Comments

Mähler-Besse “Cheval Noir” Grand Vin, Saint-Émilion, Bordeaux, France 2009

Posted on January 23, 2014 by waywardwine

It is Thursday. Work-weariness be damned. I could use a drink.

Since we reached Bordeaux with Monday’s EU Austerity Drinking Tour, nostalgic, I decide to crack open a Bordelaise stateside. Tonight’s entry derives from Saint-Emilion: famed sub-region on the Dordogne River’s right bank.

The world drinks and grows Merlot because of Saint-Émilion. Veins remain in its chalky cliffs, cut by Roman vine roots nearly two millennia ago. Sideways may have tarnished the grape and drunk Cheval Blanc from a paper cup. But wines from Saint-Émilion steadfastly remain the most expensive and collected worldwide.

Tonight, we drink 2009’s Cheval Noir (no relation to the famed Blanc). Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cheval Blanc, Cheval Noir, Mähler-Besse, merlot, Negociant, Petrus, Saint-Émilion, Sideways | 2 Comments

Open Doors in Graves: Château Pont de Brion Bordeaux Deconstructed

Posted on January 20, 2014 by waywardwine

Day 93 of EU Austerity Drinking finds us sick, stuck in bed, in Bordeaux, and worst of all, completely sober.

But “Portes Ouvertes dans les Graves” is happening. Basically, free buses will carry us from one free winery tour and tasting to the next, until we have soaked in all that Graves has to offer.

So I drag my flu-riddled wife out of bed. We miss the first train, after hacking and coughing our way to the station. We catch our breath, and hop on the next. While we chug out of Bordeaux, here’s some context.

Graves is a subregion of Bordeaux. It covers vineyards that surround the city and run South along the Garonne River’s left bank. Continue reading →