Wine Discovery Week 4: The Wines of France

In the fourth week of our Wine Discovery Series at Levity, we focused on the wines of France. On Monday night, we discussed the French appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) system, and how it governs the production of French wines, as well as other agricultural products in France. We moved from a discussion of the AOC moved to an instruction of how to read a French wine label, and then explored a few key French wine regions in detail. 

We began the evening with two white wines from the Loire Valley, a Saviennieres and a Muscadet. After briefly touching on the history of those two regions, and the general characteristics of their wines, we changed over to red wines for our exploration of France's two most heralded wine producing regions: Burgundy and Bordeaux. 

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Back at BRIX, Exploring Europe's Legacy in South America

From June of 2008, to July of 2009, I had the pleasure of working as a Wine Consultant at one of Boston's premier wine retailers, BRIX Wine Shop. Owned by long-time friends and wine afficionados, Carri Wroblewski and Klaudia Mally, BRIX has taken the Boston wine scene by storm since their opening in 2003. Featuring stunning architecture, and a selection of wines that is quite possibly beyond compare, BRIX has become a destination location for wine lovers in the Boston area.

This past weekend, I went to Boston to see The Tragically Hip live in concert at The House of Blues. The Hip, as their loyal following affectionately refers to them, have been my favorite band since I was a senior in high school, and I make it a point to see them whenever their tour schedule brings them into the New England area. However, as I was making plans to see the concert, I thought I'd check in with Carri to see if I might make a homecoming to BRIX, and host a tasting at the South End shop on Saturday night.

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"Just Give Me a Glass of Cab..." - Cabernet Panel Tasting Results

"Just give me a glass of Cab."Our tasting line-up 

Those words have probably been uttered thousands of times, by bar patrons, wedding attendees, and countless other wine drinkers looking for a simple and appealing glass of red. Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's most widely planted grapes, having migrated from its ancestral home in Bordeaux's Medoc peninsula to play a leading role in wine production on nearly every continent in which grapes are grown. It originated as the product of an accidental crossing between Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc, but once consumers fell in love with the grape, there was no holding it back. Today, Cabernet Sauvignon can be found in France, the United States, Italy, Australia, South Africa, Chile, Argentina, Spain, Canada and more. While the styles of the wines produced from Cabernet Sauvignon depending on the country in which it is produced, the fact of the matter is that Cabernet Sauvignon resonates with consumer's palates in a manner that few other grapes are able to replicate. The term "Cab" or "Cabernet Sauvignon" is often used as a synonym for red wine by novice wine drinkers. Due to its near univeral popularity, Cabernet Sauvignon has seen its name become genericized, in much the same way that a "Coke" has become something of a generic term for a soda, or soft drink.

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Upcoming Panel Tasting: Cabernet Sauvignon

Our next panel tasting will be in the weeks following Labor Day, in celebration of Cabernet Day, which is August 30th. However, due to the Labor Day holiday and travel plans, we'll be holding the tasting following Labor Day. Since we've covered one half of the 1976 "Paris Tasting" by covering Chardonnay, I suppose it makes sense to look at the other side (both reds and whites were featured in the 1976 event), in our second panel tasting. If you'd like to join the tasting panel, submit our General Question form with the subject line "Cabernet Day Tasting" and include your contact details in the body of the email. Cheers!

You can win a free spot in the panel tasting by being the top scorer in our Quiz on Cabernet Sauvignon!

Update on Monday, September 10, 2012 at 10:02PM by truthinjuice

For those of you who have been awaiting the announcement of a date for this tasting panel, it will be on Thursday, September 20th, at 8:00 PM. Because the tasting will be hosted at a private residence, we will not post the address, but it will be made available to those who sign up through the General Question Form, with the subject line "Cabernet Panel Tasting."

The cost of the tasting will be between $15 and $20 per person, but remember that you can win a free spot in the panel tasting (or a Starbucks gift card) by completing our quiz on Cabernet. The contest will be closed, and answers to the quiz will be posted on Tuesday, September 18th, so get your submissions in before then!