2015 Chateauneuf-du- Pape Chateau La Nertre Vineyard

When you buy a French wine, are you buying the aristocratic history or the wine in a bottle? Here is a French release ’15 Grenache red blend. It’s from old vines growing on this 12th Century estate, where the vineyard lies in Southern France with an old famous castle on top.

Of course, these grape vines aren’t the original vines, because maximum age for grape vines is about 100 years. What we actually are buying is quality attached to the wine from specific vines and its production techniques. So much for romancing the grape. Ratz! And I wanted to dance the Minuet.

To the Chateau-du-Pape: This ’15 is good enough to shelf, store, and have on hand. “Drink-it-now” gives a heather nose. It has good legs with full ruby red color. Plus, the French winemaker used a genuine cork stopper. First tasting is fruity: plum. Later complexity shows coca, black cherry with an even juniper finish.

This Grenache blend isn’t an overpowering red, but it would pair well with red meats. Serve with a wild game dinner or lamb chops.