Sometimes life takes you in different geographical directions. It is best to handle all that running around with a glass of wine.
Sunday morning my husband and I found ourselves in the historic area and little shopping mecca of Old Town Spring. We were so early that not much had opened, so we wandered around window shopping. I saw one place I wanted to check out when they opened and that was the Envy Wine Room. I am so glad we stopped in because not only did they have some nice, nice wines (affordable too!!!) but I found a kindred spirit there!! A kindred spirit is worth a hundred bottles of wine! Effie Stees, the owner, was behind the counter of this wine bar, wine events, retail wine shop, wine accessories, cute as heck clothes and other fabulous accoutrements of retail therapy. So what made Effie a kindred spirit?? The fact that she, like me, is genuinely excited and happy when she has helped you find the perfect wine or introduced you to a wine that you haven’t tried before and now LOVE!! That is kindred enough for me.
Chateau La Mascaronne 2015 quat saisons Rose from Cote de Provence
These vineyards are owned by an American businessman who has a passion for restoring old neglected wineries and turning them into fully functioning organic vineyards. He bought Chateu Miraval in 1993 and sold it in 2012 to Brad Pitt and Angelina Joie. This estate, La Mascaronne, is a more recent purchase. Bought for the limestone rocks that blanket the vineyards, it now produces about 10,000 cases of six different wines. (Think unique and lovingly crafted!!)
This Rose is made with the red grapes of Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah and Mouvedre (now there is a mouthful of grapes that sound nothing like Cabernet) which are hallmark varieties for Rose and red blends from the Provence wine region. The wine is not red, because grape juice itself is clear. It is the contact with the skins that impart the color. If the juice is only in contact with the skins for a few hours, than only a little color is imparted. Think pink!
This Rose has intense aromas and flavors of lemon citrus and strawberry with a salty minerality that always makes me think of crab cakes and oysters. This one was enjoyed by my husband at the Envy Wine Room in the company of Effie and her assistant, Gabby I only had a few sips. Quat saisons– meant to be enjoyed four seasons of the year and by real men, too!!
So that was the noon wine.
We then returned to Houston and decided to lunch on the way home. We chose Benjy’s on Washington Avenue. I chose another easy to find Rose´ available by the glass — Gerard Bertrand Gris Blanc 2015. Pale salmon color but its brisk acidity and bright flavors would allow this to be enjoyed with a wide variety of salads with olives and capers, seafood dishes and even Thai Curry (yes!!!!). I was having an awesome lunch of lightly grilled Scottish salmon on a quinoa broccoli salad with pine nuts and vinaigrette. The flash fried Brussel Sprout appetizer was pretty darn good, too. It was a very happy pairing.
Gerard Bertrand Gris Blanc 2015
And if you love the idea of this wine, you can buy it at HEB Grocery for $15. In fact, their new Instacart service will deliver it to your door –IN ONE HOUR — just in case you don’t feel like going out to get it. I haven’t used the service yet, but if I was having a wine emergency….
Cheers,
CabRene´
EveryDayCabRene 