WBW #33: Château de la Casenove 2004 Masia M
Wines like this one are what make Wine Blogging Wednesday so great.
You see, my knowledge of French wine is mediocre at best and my knowledge of wines from the Midi is even more limited. Actually, I know next to nothing other than that it’s hot there and there are lots of bargain wines being made there. And, when I think hot regions, I think about the plush, fruit bomb wines of Australia and parts of California.
As you may have guessed based on the wines I typically review and drink, those wines are not my cup of tea.
And that’s why I went into this edition of WBW with a little trepidation. But, at least Marcus didn’t want us to spend a lot of money this time ’round. What did I have to lose? A bias against hot regions for one.
According to where I got this wine (Greene Grape) Château de la Casenove 2004 Masia M is 100% Carignan, a grape that I don’t know much about, and for $13, this is absolutely a wine I’d drink again. I’m swamped with work tonight, so a full review (with background information etc.) just isn’t gonna happen, but you can learn more about this producer elsewhere on the Internet.
As I sit here writing and working on some other projects, this wine is really opening up. When I first poured it, it was pretty faint on the nose, but with twenty or so minutes in the glass, earthy, rustic cherry aromas are really developing and expanding. That rustic, dusty earthiness really comes through on the palate as well with some sweet cherry and some toasty oak flavors. It’s a pretty soft, supple wine, and regardless of what Greene Grape’s site says, this wine seems more like a Grenache-dominated wine to me. I see that previous vintages were a blend of the two.
Regardless, this seems like a good wine for casual drinking (maybe with burgers right off the grill?). And, again, I’d definitely drink it again.
One of my house wines. Nice stuff!