Wine52 goes Sud-Ouest

The Sud-Ouest (South-West) wine region in France covers several appellations with a climate relatively similar to that of Bordeaux. Much like in Bordeaux, the Atlantic Ocean has quite an influence on weather conditions, helping moderate the hot summers. Besides some better known regions you may have heard of such as Cahors and Bergerac, there are also 14 IGPs to look out for. The best known is probably Cotes de Gascogne where the white variety Colombard often features or indeed takes up a large part of the blend.

One of the big USPs for me for this region is the number of indigenous grape varieties they can boast. This includes Tannat, Petit Manseng, Gros Manseng and a couple of even lesser known grapes such as Fer Savadou.

Our latest Wine52 Free Case covers 3 sub-regions, with a red from Comte Tolosan, a white Cotes de Gascogne and a white Gaillac. Find out below:

The Wine Verdict

Adiou Rouge by Vinovalie

Vinovalie is a group of 400 growers meaning they have a huge diversity of soils, climates and grape varieties to work with which results in a fantastic range of styles. The Adiou in this case is a blend of Malbec and Merlot, pairing the bold, textured weight of Malbec with the ripe, lighter Merlot.

The nose showed lovely ripe berries with raspberry and cherry leading the fruit whilst a chocolatey undertone hinted at the Malbec on the palate.

And chocolatey it was, giving the feeling that you were eating a fruit cookie interspersed with chocolate chips. The sweet, ripe fruits simply worked really well in tandem with the heftier flavours afforded by the Malbec. It was velvety smooth and had great depth and finish.

Compte Goutte by Cave de Rabastens

This is an interesting white blend from Gaillac with grapes not even mentioned above. It contains Mauzac (which tends to have a honeyed flavour), Loin de l’Oeil (the origins of which are still a mystery) and Muscadelle (the one you’ll probably recognise and known for its grapey, floral character).

I’d say that this was definitely my favourite of the case thanks to it’s multilayered drinking experience. The white fruits were super ripe with yellow plum, yellow peach and apricot, giving the impression of a warm climate Viognier. This was well complemented by a waxy, honeyed note. Next red apple and blossom came into play with a delicious Crème Brulee-esque finish. It was an aromatic, powerful wine well worthy of your attention.

Que Droumirey Douman by Plaimont

The final wine is from the Cotes de Gascogne, a white blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Colombard.

The Sauvignon displays itself nicely as a cool climate style with a herbaceous, grapefruit character coming through. It is a little tropical with some gooseberry but nothing over the top. The Colombard brings out the more fresh, citrus notes in this wine I think, adding vibrant lemon, lime and even something that reminded me of the flying saucer sweets.

All in all, this is another exciting case from Wine52 exemplifying why they are worth getting into. Not only do they showcase delicious wines, but they actually show interesting wines - these are wines with distinctive qualities and provenence.