INSIDER'S PICK: 2021 DOMAINE FERME BLANCHE CASSIS ROSE $24.99

Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We will be returning to doing just the one wine on Thursdays and Fridays until further notice. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.

Many choices of Rose to be had for Memorial Day, wanted to offer one out that may not get as much recognition as it should at first look. A lot of people would look at this label and think 'Cassis? Like Creme de Cassis? Must be sweet.' That famously sweet blackcurrant liqueur was created originally in Burgundy, while this dry Rose comes from the Mediterranean Coast near the town of Cassis. So no relations there. If anything, Cassis has the most in common with its neighbor Bandol just to the East, with a similar port and amphitheater-style hills surrounding the city, framed by one of the largest bluffs on the coastline. The soil in Cassis is heavier with limestone than in Bandol, which has made it more attuned to making white wines and Roses. Quality here is consistently higher than most Cotes de Provence out there, there just aren't that many producers so we don't 'know' them as well as we should. Fresh strawberry and citrus skins on the nose, crisp almost to the point of showing some salinity on the palate with lots of quenching watermelon and cherry skin coming through, and a lengthy refreshing finish. This will stand up to lots of foods because of the body and fresh acidity, as well as be super refreshing chilled down on its own. 

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