Domaine De Coste Chaude Cotes du Rhone Villages Visan L'Argentiiere 2005

From Rhone, France comes this blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Syrah produced by Marianne & Marc Fues, whom I met at the Alsace & Rhone Valley Wine Expo earlier this week in NYC. Marc told me the oak the wine is aged in (for 12 months) comes from many different regions, giving it an interesting character. Color is a dark ruby with a subtle fruitiness and black cherry with traces of licorice and vanilla. This is one of my favorites from the day and can imagine it accompanying roasts very well.