2013 Chateau Des Rontets Pouilly-Fuisse
Ok, since it’s been awhile and this bottle has a pretty long name, let’s break down what’s going on here.
Many Americans are familiar with US and other new world wines being labeled based primarily on the producer (e.g. Robert Mondavi) and the grape varietal (e.g. Cabernet Sauvignon). There often is information about the region (e.g. Napa Valley) and in some cases even a specific vineyard (e.g. To Kalon). Occasionally additional information is on the label such as a positioning description for the wine (e.g. “reserve”) or a creative name for the specific bottling. Oh, and let’s not forget the vintage (e.g. 2001).
Ok, that’s upwards of 7 variables to track, though most labels usually have no more than 5. While this seems like a lot, if you look around you’ll find many other consumer products with a similar depth of variables. For example, consider a mobile phone purchase. It has a producer (e.g. “Apple"), a specific model (e.g. “iPhone 7 Plus”), a color (e.g. black), a carrier (e.g. AT&T), and memory capacity (e.g. 128 GB).
Ok, no problem, right? You got this. So now let’s head to France and check out this Pouilly-Fuisse.
French labels include most of the same information an American label has. In this case the producer is Chateau Des Rontets, the region is Pouilly-Fuisse, the vineyard or this unique bottling would appear to be Les Birbettes (ok, I’m not entirely sure here!), and the vintage is 2013. Cool. But wait…where’s the grape varietal? For example, how do you know whether this is Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay?
This is the key difference in the labels. French wines, like most old world wines, do not often list the grape varietal. This is because wines made in a particular geographical area (in France called an Appellation d’origine controlee) usually can only be made with specific varietals. For this particular bottle, it’s from Pouilly-Fuisse in Burgundy and so must be Chardonnay because the producer wouldn’t be allowed to use the appellation name with another grape varietal.
So does this mean you need to memorize which grapes are associated with a bunch of regions? Unfortunately, this is more or less what you need to do, though there is general consistency within a broader region. For example, virtually all white wines from Burgundy are Chardonnay and all red wines are Pinot Noir.
Honestly, I think the new world approach makes more sense. While you might familiarize yourself with French appellations, what about Italy? What about Spain? It can be a lot to remember.
Ok, phew, now on to the wine.
First, the smell. I didn’t get much from this, though I have a slight cold so am not really qualified to make a judgement. (Why am I writing this? Well, I have a schedule to keep!) I did get a whiff of smoke. Now, in some extreme cases this can be considered a fault, but in this bottle it was a more nuanced and pleasing scent.
The first taste sensation that hit me was the acidity. As is common with white Burgundy, it has a more lively bite than a typical American Chardonnay. Refreshing!
I did say I had a slight cold, so I won’t comment further :O
Overall, this appears to be a well made, food friendly Chardonnay. Not something I’d jump to serve guests as an easy sipping cocktail wine, but defintely a nice pairing with foods, even fatty foods that you might otherwise pair with a Sauvignon Blanc. (One easy tip to remember is to consider serving a wine high in acidity with food that commonly benefits from a fresh squeeze of lemon on top - in both cases the acidity helps cut through the fat or complements the sweetness).