The French Paradox Value Wine of 2021
In selecting a value wine of the year for 2021, we followed much the same criteria as we had in choosing the overall wine of the year. Just as before, the nominees were required to be compelling, available and (in this case) under $20.
Our initial debates unearthed a host of worthy candidates ranging from crisp Loire whites (Touraine, Muscadet, etc.) to burley new world reds (Paso Robles Cabernet, Columbia Valley Syrah) and many styles and regions in between. Ultimately, we settled on our winner based not only on the parameters above, but also on two qualities not easily found in the same bottle of wine: the ability to surprise and delight.
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Wines that surprise may elicit responses such as “I wasn’t expecting oak flavors in my Chablis”, or “I didn’t know they grew Malbec in the Loire”. Wines that delight could find us thinking “I remember drinking a great Sangiovese like this when we visited Montalcino” or “nothing is more satisfying than a Napa Valley Cabernet”. Wines that manage to surprise and delight are rarer and often originate from grape varieties and regions with which we are less familiar. Our top value of the year provides surprise and delight handily all in the guise of the most steadily expanding wine category (Rose).
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2020 Torre dei Beati
Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo
The 2020 Torre dei Beati Cerasuolo is a classic Rosato of Montepulciano from the central Italian region of Abruzzo. The winery is a small operation run by Fausto Albanesi whose father planted the family’s first Montepulciano vines in 1972. The Rosa-ae is created from 50% of juice bled from Montepulciano red production along with 50% of white wine from Montepulciano grapes with the skins removed. The resulting Rose offers expressive aromas of cranberry and green apple leading to a medium weight palate which introduces raspberry flavors to the mix. Focused and fresh, the Rosa-ae is by no means a shrinking violet as it possesses substantial weight and complexity to match up with pasta or seafood dishes.
This Cerasuolo has been a customer favorite and while we are not surprised by it’s popularity, we are certainly delighted by the pleasure it provided so many, so far.
We have plenty of wine in stock and plenty more available from our supplier @ $15.99 per bottle.
Please let us know of your interest and thank you as always,
Ian.