I have been absent for a while - did you miss me? No - I thought not ! Have just returned to NZ having sailed to Tahiti and return. Out of the blue a couple months ago, a friend phoned and asked if I was available to help deliver a brand new 50 footer to Tahiti, and bring another yacht back to NZ - via Bora Bora and the Cook Islands. Well, this olde seadog jumped at the opportunity to visit warmer climes (for those climatically challenged, it is now winter downunder - so the thought of a couple weeks in warmer waters, and air temperatures in the mid-high 20s was just too appealing to resist.) Although we were only in Papeete for a few days, I was glad we were residing on board - accommodation in resort styled hotels was a little expensive for this poverty stricken kiwi (food and wine prices in hotel restaurants was a little steep to say the least. I did "try" to see what French wines were available in that French colony - the answer - well nothing that I recognised! Oh yes, plenty of supermarket styled Bordeaux at Carrefour (at prices which were not too bad, considering the relative high GST/VAT) but I did purchase a few bottles, which all disappeared on the return journey. Believe me, there is no experience like sitting on a yacht (read sail boat!) in the lagoon off Bora Bora, just before sundown, sipping red wine out of a tumbler accompanying a pasta dish cooked in a tiny galley . So, ignoring two wines (a burgundy and a Rhone!) which were underwhelmingly forgetful, from some soggy notes (we hit a storm off NZ, which was exhilarating, but cold and wet when we got pooped a couple of times!) I did make note of - please excuse spelling... Ch. Du Cedre le Prestige Cahors - big, robust, sweet ripe fruit, very much a food wine but probably the best of the bunch (wish I had more of this) Montirius Vacqueyras - pronounced Grenache character - very attractive, all berries and spice - very fragrant. Ch. Nardou Cotes des Francs Bordeaux - I was most pleasantly surprised - classic Bordeaux blackcurrant, firm but ripe tannins - if served blind I would have picked a classified growth. From memory - all in that $US20-25 range - but worth a look if they are to be seen in your little corner of the world. Now I am in a fit of depression - I hate winter! Cheers st.helier
- posted
13 years ago