Six of the Best

Three of the Best -- Seguret

The wine I'm happily sipping today is Boutinot Les Six Cairanne and the name that sticks out for me is Les Six, The Six -- the newest handle for Toronto, the town where I live.

    Said to be coined by uber-rapper Drake and inspired by our phone codes --- 416 and 647 -- The Six still falls short for those of us who prefer Hogtown. The likeliest origin, however, is the six boroughs that amalgamated into one city in 1998: Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough, York, East York and Toronto.

    Meanwhile, Les Six on the Boutinot label recalls the ancient Rhone Valley viticulture tradition of blending six grape varieties -- Grenache Noir, Mourvedre and Syrah together with Carignan Noir, Counoise and Cinsault -- to make intense, spicy and rewarding dry red wines.

    Fermentation in large well-seasoned oak vats before 12 months maturation in wood has allowed the elements to fuse seamlessly with berry-nutty aromas and a savory palate with just a touch of oak. It's an elegant Rhone red with plenty of richness. 

    Les Six is not currently at the LCBO, which, however, does offer another fine Boutinot Rhone-Villages -- Les Coteaux Schisteux, $25, from the nearby village of Seguret, peppery-spicy, plum-raspberry and bay leaf scented, quietly powerful with fine red meats and aged cheeses. 

    More of a Two, this one's mostly old-vine Grenache with a little Syrah, from a rugged, east-facing single vineyard called Les Turcs.

    Both wines are Number One with me!

Ranging The Rhone

In thirsty pursuit of Syrah/Shiraz, people tend to forget about its ancestral home, the mighty Rhone Valley, birthplace of many other big beautiful reds as well as superb white, and pink, wines.

    Famous names tumble from the tongue: Cote-Rotie, Condrieu, Hermitage, Cornas, Rasteau, Gigondas, Cairanne, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Lirac, Tavel, Costières de Nimes, and more.

    From C de Nimes, for example, I’m currently enjoying a delectable Chateau de Nages 2014, a rock-solid, rich extra-dry white that’s a steal for only $19.95. Blended from old vines like Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Viognier and Bourboulenc; unoaked, stony and crisp, with nuances of lemon zest and white grapefruit.

    Crafted by self-admitted “peasant-researcher, perfectionist and doubting Thomas” Michel Gassier, a fervent defender of C de Nîmes and the Camargue, it’s a fine expression of his adored terroir and the richness of this most southerly Rhone appellation.

    Best kept secrets of the Rhone: it’s France’s second biggest wine region with 28 appellations, 5,000 producers, 27 grape varieties headed by Grenache and stretches 200 km along the Rhone River.

    The northern Rhone is the cradle of Syrah (known in Australia as Shiraz) and the typical red blend is Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre. Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier grapes are used for the northern white wines, Clairette, Grenache and Bourboulenc in the south (white wines make up 6% of the Rhone total).

    Tiny aromatic Condrieu is 100% Viognier. Tavel is the best and most famous rose, which makes up 13% of all Rhone wines. 

    Find out much more about this cornucopia of choice from rhone-wines.com