TN: Three Viogniers, three continents

Having already tried one from Calif, I decided to try three Viogniers from elsewhere. This was fun! I have listed these wines in order of preference. One additional note; the Yalumba was under screwcap, the other two were under natural cork.

2002 Viognier de Pennautier Vin de Pays d'Oc (from Languedoc) - fairly bold honey color, oak and citrus nose, lime and grapefruit flavors with a limey/nutty finish. Rather impressive at US$11.99 (Pennsylvania) which makes me wonder which region of France produces the best Viognier.

2004 Yalumba South Australia Viognier - pale gold color, fairly oakey bouquet with somewhat bittersweet grapefruit flavor dominating. Vanilla/nut finish. Good QPR at US$9.99 .

2004 Don Miguel Gascon Viognier Mendoza Argentina - very light green/yellow color, mild oak/citrus aroma, lemon/grapefruit/lime flavors and a fairly short lime/nut finish. Good on its own merits at US$11.99, but not as good a value next to the above two.

Overall, I didn't find a huge difference in flavor between these wines or the one from Calif (made by McDowell of Mendocino). All of these wines were unmistakably Viognier.

Dan-O

Reply to
Dan The Man
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No need to wonder. The best in the world is from Condrieu.

Dimitri

Reply to
D. Gerasimatos

Exactly. So chosing 3 worldly viogniers and leaving out Condrieu is like having a world summit on capitalism and not inviting the USA ;-)

Even in France, is is amazing to remark how completely and radically different (and better) viognier is in Condrieu compared even to nearby areas like Ardeche.

Next time, please think about including a Condrieu from either Villard, Gaillard, Cuilleron, Vernay or Gangloff.

Mike Tommasi, Six Fours, France email link

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Reply to
Mike Tommasi

Condrieu. There are several to choose from (AZ/US), but all are very nice. I find the FR Viogniers to be far more subtle (not much of a surprise here), than new world ones. That said, however, there are some excellent producers of NW versions that I really like. I don know this producer, but it sounds like a good one.

I've had this one on a few occasions, but was underwhelmed. OK, and the QPR was fairly good. However, I'd spend more $ for more bang.

Never had an Argentinian Viognier. Unfairly, I think of Mendoza as pure Malbec. I'd better broaden my though process.

Dan, two US Viogniers that I have really liked are the Gregory Graham, Napa, and the Joseph Phelps (Napa, I think, but I've drained all my bottles, so I can't be sure right now - besides, the winery is Napa, but the grapes may be sourced from other sub-AVAs). Both may be difficult to find outside of the N CA/US areas, but well worth the efforts, just like the various Condrieus.

Hunt

Reply to
Hunt

Dan, a PS to the last reply: just had Dick Arrowood's US Viognier. Another keeper, though it seemed very sensitive to the serving temp. Too cool, and it was austere. When it warmed a bit, it offered up aroma and taste, but once it passed a fairly narrow band of temp, it got a bit hot.

Hunt

Reply to
Hunt

Cold Heaven (Morgan Clendenen) makes a blend called 'Deux C'. Half the of blend is from Santa Rita Hills in CA and the other half is from Condrieu (Cuilleron). It's a very nice "California" viognier. Cold Heaven has a few other viognier bottlings as well.

By the way, another famous viognier appellation in France is Chateau-Grillet. It consists of just a single estate. Character is similar to Condrieu.

Dimitri

Reply to
D. Gerasimatos

Thanks for the reminder for Chateau Grillet. Unfortunately, they are rarely seen in AZ/US, though we do manage several Condrieu (plural also?), or Condrieus. I seem to have a tendency to forget, what I don't get often.

Hunt

Reply to
Hunt

Was this the Virgilius or the "Eden Valley" Viognier? The "second" wine the "Eden Valley" is definitely quite grapefruity / apricot. The "Virgilius" is however in a completely different class. Definitely work seeking out if you can find it. Probably the benchmark viognier from Australia.

Reply to
Adrian B

Yes, but the price is way too high for this wine, ans you will find better wine at lower prices in adjacent Condrieu...

Mike Tommasi, Six Fours, France email link

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Reply to
Mike Tommasi

Greetings Adrian, "Eden Valley Rd" is mentioned in the address at the bottom of the front label - the name "Virgilius" doesn't appear anywhere, so this one must be an Eden Valley.

Dan-O

Reply to
Dan The Man

Thanks to everyone for the recommendations - my shopping list just got a little longer! :-)

Dan-O (have corkscrew, will travel)

Reply to
Dan The Man

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