Make Mine A Double

Wine Review: Langlois L’Extra Crémant Rosé and Zull Lust & Laune Rosé

Yes it’s August already, so why not enhance the summer vibe with some totally drinkable rosé?

Here is a pair from O’Briens’ August wine promotions – one sparkling and one still – that are worth popping open anytime, but especially when they are on offer:

Langlois L’Extra Crémant de Loire Rosé NV

Langlois L'Extra Crémant de Loire Rosé NV

Langlois are a well-established Saumur-based Loire producer who specialise in Crémants – they have six including this rosé – as well as reds and whites from Saumur and the surrounding appellations. They have been part of the Bollinger group since 1973 and their parent’s savoir-faire has undoubtedly helped to lift quality.

There are two classes in the Anglois Crémant range. The four traditional Crémants consist of up to four varieties: Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir, in either NV or vintage expressions. The L’Extra range has a white – which is outstanding – and this rosé.

The blend for this Crémant is 70% Cabernet Franc and 30% Grolleau. The latter is a black grape primarily grown in the Loire and used for rosés – Anjou rosé and Crémant rosé – though seldomly seen on a front label. The grapes are pneumatically pressed immediately after destemming, giving 100 litres of juice from 150 kg of grapes. For this wine the free run juice (the cuvée) and some of the subsequent light pressings (the taille) are used. It spends a minimum of 12 months in bottle before disgorgement.

In the glass it is fully sparkling (the traditional method is used for all Crémants) and a pale salmon colour. The nose shows lots of fresh summer fruits, notably raspberry and strawberry. In the mouth it has a light and creany texture, with those summer fruits back again. It has a certain yeastiness, but not the full-on brioche experience of some Champagnes.

For me this rosé comes a narrow second to its white sibling, but there’s no shame in that as the Blanc is so excellent – I bought my wife a dozen for mother’s day this year. If you fancy a well-made pink fizz then there’s little to touch this at the price.

  • ABV: 12.5%
  • RRP: €18.95 down from €21.45 until 31/08/22
  • Source: sample
  • Stockists: O’Briens stores and obrienswine.ie

Zull NiederÖsterrreich Lust & Laune Rosé 2021

Zull Lust & Laune Rosé

Weingut Zull is a quality Austrian producer still in the hands of its founding family. It has four ranges within its portfolio, the majority of which carry the Weinwiertel DAC appellation. The introductory range includes three “Lust & Laune” wines which are designed to be fun and accessible. The white is 100% Grüner Veltliner, the red is a blend of Zweigelt and Pinot Noir, and this rosé is similar to the red but also has dashes of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

The colour comes from 20% red wine being added to 80% clear juice – though I don’t have details of which varieties are used for the 20% – rather than the saignée method. Whichever they are, the result is a lovely glowing salmon pink. The nose features fresh, ripe red fruit aromas which jump out of the glass: strawberry, raspberry, loganberry, watermelon and fruit polos. This is a zingy, fun, fleshy, FRUITY wine, full of summer fruits but not at all flabby (residual sugar is only 4 g/L). You might even detect a hint of tannin on the finish, but it’s just a little seasoning. Wonderful stuff!

  • ABV: 12.0%
  • RRP: €11.96 down from €15.95 until 31/08/22
  • Source: sample
  • Stockists: O’Briens stores and obrienswine.ie

Conclusion

I loved both of these wines and would happily drink either again, but in terms of sheer pleasure the Zull wins the day.

 


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Wine + Music

The Frankly Wines & Friends Wine & Music Series #5 – Penny Sadler

In these unusual times, we all need a lift from time to time. As a change to my usual wine reviews I’ve decided to start a fun and irreverent series on matching wine and music. The basic idea is that I give participants:

  • A piece of music –> they suggest a wine to go with it, with an explanation
  • A wine –> they suggest a piece of music to go with it

It’s all for fun, so please don’t slag off anybody’s taste music (or wine!) Thanks to Michelle Williams for the inspiration – she has been matching songs to wine for years on her Rockin Red Blog.

Part 5 of the Frankly Wines & Friends Wine & Music Series is in the capable hands of Penny Sadler. As the wines available in her home city of Dallas differ a fair amount to those in my home city of Dublin, I wanted to choose a nice, recognisable and widely available wine. Bollinger’s excellent Special Cuvée Non-Vintage Champagne fit the bill perfectly!

One of the albums I recently included in my all-time top 10 list is the seminal Rumours by Fleetwood Mac. It has been a favourite of mine since the early ’80s, and most people of my age from the UK will remember John McVie’s bass riff introducing Formula 1 coverage. The band’s line-up has changed frequently over their 53 year (and counting) but retained the same rhythm section. I had the pleasure of seeing them live in November 2003 and June 2019.

Just as an aside, Deep Dish (two fantastic deep house artists / DJs from Washington DC) did a “cover version” of Dreams but kept it authentic by having Stevie Nicks rerecord her vocals for their version – check it out here.

Bollinger Special Cuvée NV

Bollinger Special Cuvée NV

The wine Frankie chose for me is Bollinger Special Cuvée NV. I have to say that I wondered for a moment if Frankie had hacked my email, because at the time I was writing a newsletter and blog about sparkling wine.

Bollinger is one of the oldest and most revered champagne houses in France. All of their wines are aged twice as long as is required by the rules of the AOC. They’ve survived phylloxera, WW2, and a lot more. The Special Cuvée is made with 65% Pinot Noir grapes. I feel the dominant Pinot Noir gives the wine more depth, more layers, and more fruit forward aromatics, which I like.

The Bollinger Special Cuvée is meant to be drunk young, though you can cellar it for a few years. But, as it’s already aged for at least thirty months instead of the minimum fifteen, I say, go for it.

I had a hard time choosing between a song that was fun, energetic and bubbly, like Champagne, or a song that was a classic, just as Champagne is a classic drink, marking so many important events in our lives.

As it turns out, I got both, in the song Dancing In The Street. Originally written by Marvin Gaye and performed by Martha Reeves and the Vandellas in 1964, it’s a catchy song that reminds me of travel and good times. It’s just a fun song! It became a number one hit in the U.S and the UK, and is one of only fifty sound recordings preserved in the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. Just like the Bollinger Special Cuvée, this is a special song.

Dancing In The Street has been recorded by a number of different artists over the years. Mick Jagger and the late, great, David Bowie recorded it as a duet for Live Aid, in 1985. These two iconic singers put their own riff on the song calling out the names of places around the world––Tokyo, South America, Australia, France, Germany – challenging everyone, to dance in the street. I’m pretty sure we’re going to see a lot of that when we’re all able to travel freely again!

They’ll be dancing, dancing in the street
(Dancing in the street)
It’s an invitation across the nation, a chance for folks to meet
They’ll be laughing and singing and music swinging
Dancing in the street

Can’t you just see yourself drinking a class of Bollinger Special Cuvée and then, no matter where you are, “dancing in the street.”

Dreams by Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac, a British American pop band released the album Rumours in 1977, with four singles. One of them, Dreams, became the #1 selling single from the album and the only #1 song for the band in America. 40 years later, the album is still wildly successful and has sold over 45,000,000 copies.

Frankie asked me what kind of music I liked and though I gave him quite a few options, he picked one of my all time favorites. Dreams is a beautiful melody written and sung by Stevie Nicks. She said she wrote it in about ten minutes with just her keyboard. The song is about her breakup with band member and boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham. Nicks also said that even though they were both really pissed at each other at the time, when he heard the song, he smiled at her.

I remember listening to Rumours obsessively as my BFF and I primped and crimped ourselves for a night out. It wasn’t uncommon for us to leave a few broken hearts in our wake, which fits with the theme of the album. Not only Dreams, but every single song on the album is about relationships gone awry between the band members. It remains to this day a ’70s rock classic.

When I started thinking about what wine to pair with Dreams, I thought, well, what was I drinking in 1977. Wine wasn’t a big thing in my life in those days, and frankly (Frankie), there wasn’t much available that fit the budget of a high school girl. However, instead of taking a different approach to the wine pairing, I stuck with the period theme. I recall the only wine we drank was Soave, a light, Italian white wine. Aptly, as an adult I’ve become a frequent traveler to Italy and lover of great Italian wine. But in high school I was drinking the cheap stuff, by Bolla.

bolla soave classico

I wouldn’t call Bolla Soave a great Italian wine, but it has stood the test of time; for only 10 dollars a bottle it is quaffable. But, no, I haven’t had it since 1978.

Penny Sadler

Penny Sadler is a travel and wine writer and student of the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, an internationally recognized certification and credential in wine and spirits.

Penny has traveled extensively to some of the world’s most interesting wine regions. She’s picked grapes in Barolo and Emilia Romagna, visited a 2000 year old wine cave in France, and led winery tours in Napa Valley.

A native Dallasite, Penny spent a year in Napa Valley learning the ins and outs of the wine tourism industry. She writes creative content for the travel and hospitality trade as well as assisting others with travel planning and hosting wine tastings. You can keep in touch with Penny via her website, Adventures of a Carry-on, a travel and lifestyle blog. Or follow her on Instagram @Adventureofacarryon or Twitter @PennySadler


The Frankly Wines & Friends Wine & Music Series
No. Guest Name Music to pair Wine to pair
14 Lee Isaacs The Rolling Stones – Gimme Shelter Domaine Jones Fitou
13 Sharon L Souls Of Mischief –  93 ‘Til Infinity Penfolds RWT
12 Tim Milford Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man Nyetimber Classic Cuvée
11 Mags McKee U2 with BB King –  When Love Comes to Town Pittnauer Zweigelt Heideboden
10 Cara Rutherford The Cure – Just Like Heaven Suertes del Marqués ‘7 Fuentes’
9 Melanie May The Cult –  She Sells Sanctuary Sipp Mack GC Rosacker Riesling
8 James Hubbard Gary Moore – Parisienne Walkways Penfolds Bin 707 Cab Sauv
7 Paul Moran Underworld – Rez Suertes del Marqués Trenzado
6 Nirina Plunkett Jamiroquai – Space Cowboy Club Remix Wolfberger Crémant d’Alsace
5 Penny Sadler Fleetwood Mac – Dreams Bollinger Special Cuvée
4 Jim Dunlop The Beatles – The Long And Winding Road Man O’ War Valhalla Chardonnay
3 Avril Kirrane McMorrough Norah Jones – Don’t Know Why Joseph Cattin Riesling Reserve
2 Tim of Soliciting Flavours Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings Viña Tondonia Blanco
1 Sinéad Smyth Stardust – Music Sounds Better With You Mullineux Syrah
Opinion

This Summer’s BBQ Wines #9 Langlois Crémant

Better than Moët for half the price!  Do I have your attention now?  Read on…

If you’re in a happy mood and fancy a glass of fizz sat on the patio, this might just be your thing.

Langlois-Château vineyards
Langlois-Château vineyards

Langlois-Château Crémant de Loire Brut NV (€23.99, O’Briens)

Langlois-Château Crßmant de Loire Brut NV
Langlois-Château Crßmant de Loire Brut NV

Crémant de Loire is one of the many traditional method sparkling wines made in France in addition to Champagne.  The Loire Valley is home to the second by volume after Alsace; Burgundy, Bordeaux and the Jura also make good examples.  The method for Crémant is the same as for Champagne, but the grape varieties differ depending on the area, and the minimum time ageing on the lees is shorter than Champagne’s 15 months (for non-vintage).

Langlois-Chateau is actually owned by Champagne House Bollinger, who know a few things about quality sparkling wine.  The blend for this bottling is :

  • Chenin Blanc (a Loire white grape)
  • Chardonnay (the ultimate white grape for sparkling wine)
  • Cabernet Franc (a versatile black Loire grape used for red, rosé and sparkling wine)
Langlois-Chaâteau exterior (thewinesleuth.co.uk)
Langlois-Chaâteau exterior (thewinesleuth.co.uk)

As soon as you pour a glass the fine mousse and persistent fine bubbles show the wine’s class.  On the nose there’s rich citrus and red fruit, wrapped in lovely pastry – the sign of significant lees ageing.  It’s heavenly to drink, as the aromas flow through to the palate, with acidity and sweetness beautifully poised.

People who know good Crémants often mention how good value they are; while this fact is true, bottles such as this deserve to be assessed purely on quality grounds – it’s a damn fine drop!

This Summer’s BBQ Wines:

#1 – Bellow’s Rock Coastal Region Shiraz 2013

#2 – Château Michel Cazevieille Origine 1922 AC Saint Chinian 2012

#3 – and #4! Domaine de Maubet IGP Côtes de Gascogne 2014 & Venturer Côtes de Gascogne 2014

#5 – Byron Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir 2012

#6 – Lot #01 Mendoza Malbec Cabernet 2013

#7 and #8 – Quinta da Alorna

#9 – Langlois-Château Crémant de Loire Brut NV