INSIDER'S PICK: 2012 Ch. MOURGUES DU GRES COSTIERES DE NIMES 'TERRE DE FEU' $22.99

The return of a producer that was considered among the great value wine sources from Nimes and the entire southern region of France. Their success in the late 90s-early 00s helped to open the world's eyes to the potential quality found in regions NOT named Chateauneuf-du-Pape or the other more famous Rhone addresses, and importers have been doing a fantastic job scouring the garrigue covered hills since then for other gems. Mourgues du Gres is still among the pace-setters, and thanks to one of our great local importers is back in our local market. While this is one of their more distinctive single vineyard cuvees, be sure to look for their great value wines in some of the other Wine Warehouse tastings and activities in the near future.

The vineyard name 'Terre de Feu' means 'Land Of Fire' and received it's name back in 2003 when the exceptionally hot vintage helped to spark a fire in the surrounding garrigue, causing some scorching on some of the vines. The old vines here usually provided fruit for three of their other blends, but they choose to separate them out, and really came to like the character of the individual site. In subsequent vintages they initially only created this blend when the vintage quality allowed them to hold back the juice without reducing the quality of the other established wines, but as other sites they own have matured and improved, the bottling has become much more consistently produced. A blend of Grenache, Carignan and Syrah, the aromas are immediately warm and inviting, full of  red fruits and dried spice, the Carignan providing a particularly savory note. The texture on the palate is fairly rich but not fruity and saturated, with lots of dark earth and unsweetened cocoa notes behind the red fruits, as well as a surprisingly polished finish. This wine exemplifies what has become great about the growth of quality in Southern French wines, that it has much in common with a Cotes du Rhone yet is so distinctive that it deserves to be talked about and enjoyed with its own identity.

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