Valentine Value Vinos from Around the Globe ~ Wines of the Week ~ Day 2 ~ Château de Saint-Amour + Moscato d’Asti DOCG

PREFACE

1. THE HEART OF THE DEAL ~ THE WINERY: info is coming from the company’s own statement
   1. I can’t make up their history
   2. Nor am I to try
2. THE SCIENCE OF THE DEAL ~ WINEMAKING
3. THE SOUL OF THE DEAL ~ SAMPLE
   1. Sample from: Quintessential Wines

2015 Château de Saint-Amour from Georges Duboeuf

THE HEART OF THE DEAL: WINERY/NEGOCIANT: Georges Duboeuf: For more than four centuries, the Duboeuf family has been producing wine. Georges, well known for his dynamism, created Les Vins Georges Duboeuf in September of 1964. This historical date also marks the start of his wine merchant business, selecting, bottling and selling fine French wines from the Beaujolais and Mâconnais regions of Burgundy and, in the process, becoming world-famous.

Château de Saint-Amour: In Saint-Amour, the northern most Cru, which is considered the most sensual – because of its name, as well as its wines – the Siraudin family is dedicated to crafting artisanal wines that fully express the unique clay and granite terroir of their estate.

THE SCIENCE OF THE DEAL: The region is Saint-Amour. Their estate vineyards face the southwest, so they gets sun from morning to late afternoon: cool mornings, cooling down early in the afternoon. (This is perfect for horticulture and viticulture, from my personal experiences. A great balance.) Hand harvested of the nearly 50 acres, the vines are about 20 years old – mid-life, if vines are pulled at 30 years, as I’ve seen done in California. The Gamay grapes were hand harvested – for a more delicate wine, and fermentations take place in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks, might the wine not experience any barrel aging.

THE SOUL OF THE DEAL: This wine for this Chateau de Saint-Amour is 100 percent Gamay. It has a medium, smooth body. And I was ready for it, once tasting it, to have it drip down my chin. It delivered in its truest form. This Gamay wine makes me want to go to Chateau de Saint-Amour. I want to be there, walk through its vineyards, soak in its terroir, and cavort the way I’d make Bacchus grin with understanding.

2016

THE HEART OF THE DEAL: Luca Bosio Vineyards, Piedmont Italy ~ Luca Bosio Vineyards, now in its third generation, was established in 1967 by farmers Egidio and Angela. Their son, Valter Bosio married Rosella and along with their son Luca, a graduate winemaker, work tirelessly to keep up the family tradition. Luca has brought a wave of freshness and novelty both in technical and commercial areas. After the success of his innovative and progressive ideas, and under the constant support of the family, the company has taken the name of Luca Bosio Vineyards. [It’s] located in the center of the Langhe region of Piedmont. The company has 60 acres of vineyards and sources additional grapes from vineyards in Piedmont.

THE SCIENCE OF THE DEAL: This wine has a light straw color, yet it’s considered to be a very complicated grape variety. Namely, it’s a Moscato. Grown in Piedmont’s sunny hills, where there are dry soils and a cool climate, this Asti region helps to shape Italy’s effervescent Moscatos. The grapes from this Moscato come from vineyards located in the Santo Stefano Belbo villages, at 200 to 300 feet about sea level. The average age of the vines is 30 years old.

THE SOUL OF THE DEAL: If you don’t know what to expect, and you want a really fun surprise, the Moscato grape variety, grown in the cool climate of the Asti region in Piedmont, the 2016 Moscato d’Asti DOCG, Luca Bosio Vineyards Mosdato is for you. The Asti region nurtures the Moscato grape variety, then wine, with so many chemical compounds for flavors, in its genetic makeup. Nature has provided, in the Moscato, for lots of aromas and flavors. Get ready; this one is just delicious and pure fun, for adventurous palates enjoying the Yin Yang of any wine grapes. If you’re up for a bit of flavor adventure, the Moscato d’Asti DOCG is your wine. It was like angels were enveloping my palate and delivering my spirit upward, as I enjoyed the finish. Yeah, it was that good. It was such a pleasure to enjoy this Moscato d’Asti. Consider this sparkling Moscato for those spicy moments in your life. And who doesn’t enjoy bubbles, anytime, really? Think aged cheeses, for instance… The added touch of fruit flavors (yin) balances out the sharp punch (yang) delivered by the cheese.