TDF 2010 Stage 14: Revel to Ax 3 Domaines

Today's stage from Revel to Ax 3 Domaines saw the race make its long awaited and much anticipated entry into the Pyrenées, for the first of four consecutive days of serious mountain climbing. Before reaching the mountains, however, the riders faced about 140k of twisting, rolling terrain through the Midi, along the western outskirts of the Languedoc-Roussillon.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Le Tour's first passage into the Pyrenées back in 1910, perhaps the reason why the race organizers have put so much greater emphasis on the mountains of the Southwest versus the Alps.


I'd originally anticipated writing about (or having someone write about) the wines of Limoux, one of the westernmost outposts of the Languedoc, as today's route passed not far west (and, later, south, as the route bent to the east) of town. Sounds confusing, I know, but a look at the map above should help sort things out.

It's worth seeking out the Blanquette de Limoux "Le Berceau" of Maison Vergnes (Domaine de Martinolles). For this imbiber, it's among the finest wines of the AOC, if not the finest. And at around $12-15/bottle, it's a tremendous value in the ever price-escalating world of sparkling wines.

It's been quite some time since last I drank a bottle of Blanquette though, so after another look at the map of today's course, I decided to shift gears from wine to food. To cassoulet.

Cassoulet is one of those classic French dishes that instills fervid regional pride. There are well known traditional versions as far west as Gascony and east as Marseille, but it's perhaps the area surrounding Toulouse that can lay greatest claim to being it's true home. The town of Castelnaudary, located about 50k southeast of Toulouse, has done just that, proclaiming itself the "world capital of cassoulet."

I've adapted the following recipe, as best I could, from that put forth by the Grande Confrérie du Cassoulet de Castelnaudary. If you prefer, you can follow the recipe in the original French at the Confrérie's website.

Le Cassoulet de Castelnaudary
Serves 4

Ingredients:

12-14 ounces of dried lingot beans
2 legs of duck or goose confit, cut in half
4 3-ounce pieces of Toulouse sausage
4 2-ounce pieces of pork shank or pork shoulder
9 ounces of pork rinds
1 ounce of salt pork
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
1 chicken carcass, or a few pork bones
Onions
Carrots

Instructions:

Day one:

Soak beans overnight in cold water.

Day two:

Prepare the beans:
Drain the beans then place the beans in a saucepan with three quarts of cold water and boil for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, drain the water and reserve the beans.

Prepare the broth:
To three quarts of water, add pork rind (cut into large strips), the poultry carcass or pork bones, a few onions and carrots (to taste). Season generously with salt and pepper. Simmer the soup for one hour then strain. Recover and reserve the pork rind.

Cook the beans:
In this strained broth, simmer the beans until they are soft still whole (approximately one hour).

While the beans cook...

Meat Preparation:
Warm the duck or goose confit in a large frying pan to release some of the fat, then set aside the confit. In the rendered fat, brown the Toulouse sausages then remove and reserve. Finally, brown the pork shank/shoulder and, again, reserve.

Once the beans have completed cooking, drain them, reserving the broth and keeping the broth warm over low heat. Grind the salt pork and garlic cloves with a mortar and pestle, then add to the beans, along with the tablespoon of tomato paste.

Assembling the cassoulet:
Ideally, a "cassole," the earthenware dish (pictured above) for which Cassoulet is named, should be used. Alternatively, a flat bottomed earthenware casserole dish will suffice.

Line the bottom of the cassole with the pieces of reserved pork rind, add about one third of the beans, place the confit and pork on top, then top with the remaining beans. Place the sausages on top, pressing them into the beans but allowing them to remain visible. Pour on just enough of the warmed broth to just cover the beans. Generously sprinkle with cracked black pepper and add a tablespoon of the duck/goose fat used to brown the meats.

Cooking:
Bake in preheated oven at 300-325F for two to three hours. A golden brown crust will form as the dish cooks. Check periodically and, as the beans start to look dry on top, add a few tablespoons of the reserved broth.

Serve hot, directly from the "cassole," without stirring.

You'll want to double the recipe (at least!), as leftover cassoulet is a precious commodity. The only question remaining will be what to drink. I can think of many a fantastic option but I'd love to hear what your preferences may be.

Up next: Day two of four in the Pyrenées.

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Wine Traditions

Ed Addiss, owner of the import company Wine Traditions, based in Falls Church, Virginia, stopped in Philly last week to conduct a seminar at Tria Fermentation School. I sat in on class, welcoming the chance to catch up with an old friend and business associate and to taste a few of the current releases from his portfolio.

Ed’s book dabbles in Bordeaux, mostly with a handful of Cru Artisan estates. He also works with a neat handful of producers in Burgundy, primarily in the Yonne Department. He’s even stepped, somewhat begrudgingly, into the Rhône recently, nudged there by the demands of market competition. The heart and soul of his work, though, is split between two areas: Beaujolais and Southwest France.

Mr. Addiss in repose after a well executed class.

On this night, Ed focused solely on the wines of Southwest France, pouring selections that demonstrated the typicity of their AOCs and represented the workhorse entry in each winery’s lineup. There was a time when I sold all of these wines but, alas, that time passed a couple of years back. I’ve also written many of them up here in the past. So, in more than one respect, it was a real pleasure to check back in with them.


The Mauzac-dominated non-vintage Blanquette de Limoux “Le Berceau” from Domaine des Martinolles got things started. A very fresh bottling, brimming with apple fruit, waxy aromas and invigorating texture.

In previous experiences with “Mission La Caminade,” the second wine of Château la Caminade in Cahors, I’d found it to be a little on the rustic (bordering on dirty) side. The 2006 version, in welcome contrast, is showing nicely. Pepper and tanned leather on the nose lead to a medium bodied, gently gripping palate of dried blackberry and raspberry fruit. It’s definitely a solid, quaffable bistro wine.

If there’s a wine I most miss having conveniently at hand, it’s the Marcillac “Lo Sang del Païs” from Philippe Teulier’s Domaine du Cros. It’s made from Fer Servadou (the locals call it Mansois), a vine that joins Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon in the Carmenet family. Ed sometimes describes Marcillac as “Cabernet Franc Sauvage” and as a “nosey wine.” Both descriptions seem perfectly apt. The 2007 is a tad lighter than in most years but is still packed with brambly fruit and the aromas of blood, iron and pepper that so clearly mark its scents.

The most pleasant surprise of the lineup, largely because it’s a wine I’d never really thought much of, was Château Bellevue la Forêt’s Fronton (formerly Côtes du Frontonnais). The estate’s basic red offering in 2005 was much cleaner and deeper than I could recall from past vintages. Charming nose of licorice and fennel seed. It’s 50% Négrette blended with varying proportions of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Gamay – low acid but with just enough grip to support its framework.

Ed's slide show featured some picturesque shots of the farms in his portfulio.

I thought Ed’s last minute decision to throw a white in to the middle of a red-dominated lineup was inspired. A good way to refresh and re-kick the palate. I knew as soon as it hit my mouth that Camin Larredya’s 2007 Jurançon Sec “À L’Esguit” was more generous and honeyed than in past vintages. It was also stunningly good, tasting initially of melon rind and full of grippy acids. It didn’t take much coaxing to find aromas and flavors of honey, lavender, rosemary, orange peel, apple skin…. Ed confirmed that Larredya have stepped up the concentration of their wines, aiming for business with starred restaurants. Oh yeah, it’s a blend of Gros Manseng and the thicker skinned Petit Manseng.

The flow quickly shifted back to red, with the last two dry wines of the night being the tough customers in the crowd.

My first glass of Madiran “Reflet du Terroir” from Château Laffitte-Teston was corked. The second was sound but still showing some musty, damp earth oriented flavors. Very, very tight, redolent of struck iron and macerated bay leaves. Definitely in need of a roast leg of lamb and plenty of air. 80% Tannat with 10% each of Cabernets Franc and Sauvignon.

The 2005 edition of “Ohitza,” the entry level Irouléguy rouge from Domaine Brana wasn’t much more giving. If you’ve found Loire Cabernet Franc to be vegetal, you really need to drink this wine in its youth to put things into perspective. This is wild, mountain grown Cab Franc, far from tempered by the Tannat and Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend. Skeletal and stalky but with a temptingly spicy core of sinewy red fruit.

We headed back to Jurançon for the finale, served up via Camin Larredya’s 2005 Jurançon “Au Capcèu.” An absolutely delicious finale it was. This is late harvested Petit Manseng. Minty and viscerally herbaceous, it sent waves of fig and clover honey pumping across the palate with a well honed edge of acidity keeping it frisky.

* * *
After Ed's wines more or less disappeared from the Philadelphia area market a couple of years back, they have begun to reappear at a choice handful of restaurants around town, including Tinto, Tria and Royal Tavern. They’re now being cleared into PA via The Wine Merchant, Ltd., and I’m also happy for Ed that some of the core products from the Wine Traditions portfolio are now available at Chambers Street Wines in New York City. They’re characterful wines that deserve a broader audience than they’ve historically reached. And the Wine Traditions marque is one that should be added to your list of trusted importers – see the name on a back label, buy the wine… and enjoy the exploration.

A quick bite to eat and a glass of Drie Fonteinen Oude Kriek at Tria's Rittenhouse location put a nice finishing touch on the evening, just as snow began to blanket the streets in downtown Philly.

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Some Sips from Southwest France

To allay any fears that I somehow made it through an eight course tasting menu without a drop of wine, here are a few tasting notes from a recent dinner at Talula’s Table. When picking out bottles to cart along for the evening, I quickly saw a mini pattern developing with the whites, both of which were from the greater southwest of France. So I decided to continue that theme straight through the evening.

Blanquette de Limoux “Le Berceau,” Maison Vergnes (Domaine de Martinolles) NV
Although technically located in the Languedoc-Roussillon, Limoux’s situation in the eastern foothills of the Pyrenées often leads its wines to be considered in the context of the greater southwest of France. Maison Vergnes produces some of the best quality and best value wines of the AOC, with this, their flagship non-vintage Méthode Traditionnelle bottling, slotting into the always sweet under-$15 price range. It’s a typical blend to the area, constituted mostly of the local specialty Mauzac, salted and peppered with small quantities of Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc.

I was particularly keen to see how this bottle would show, as it had been hiding in my cellar for a good three or four years since purchase. The verdict was good. Hay-toned colors suggested continuing youth. The characteristic yellow apple fruit of Mauzac, along with brioche and lanolin, were still in plentiful evidence right up front. Medium mousse, generous texture and medium-bodied impact. With a bit of air, elements of bottle development began to appear, with a touch of oiliness in the rear palate and a finish redolent of roasted brazil nuts and hazelnuts. $12 on release. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Wine Traditions, Falls Church, VA.

Jurançon Sec, Domaine Castera 2006
Moving deeper in to the Pyrenées, Jurançon is an appellation noted first and foremost for its sweet, passérillage influenced wines; thus, the dry whites from the region always carry the “sec” designation for clarification. A blend of Gros Manseng and Petit Courbu, this is seriously big wine, not from oak – there is none – or rich, fat textures but rather from a combination of high acidity, intensely vinous texture and naturally high alcohol. It wears that alcohol well. Grippy texture. Loads of lime oil, wildflowers and white stone minerality. Not for casual sipping but great with food where something with cut and power is demanded. It was a brilliant match with the falafel-crusted halibut served at Talula’s and would pair extremely well with Basque sheep’s milk cheeses such as Ossau Iraty or Pyrenées Brebis. $16. 14% alcohol. Synthetic cork. Importer: Wine Traditions, Falls Church, VA.

Côtes de Bergerac, Château Haut-Bernasse 1999
Like the Blanquette de Limoux, this had been resting in my cellar for quite a few years. Unlike the Blanquette, I hadn’t planned to keep it for so long, it had just gotten away from me. I was curious to check in on its development, wondering if it would still be holding up. The color was good, a deep garnet red, semi-opaque and showing only moderate hints of maturity. Alas, a quick sniff was all it took to end the show, as the bottle was profoundly corked. Regardless of price, it’s a much bigger drag to run into a cork tainted wine when it’s been cared for so well and for so long as opposed to when it’s just come home from the wine shop. This bottle was stoppered with one of those hideously cheap composite corks that seem to be even more prone to TCA infection than “whole” corks. $14 on release. 12% alcohol. Natural cork composite. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Cahors, Clos la Coutale (V. Bernede & Fils) 2004
A more than adequate stand-in for the spoiled Bergerac. When first opened, this showed classic Cahors rusticity, with wooly, stewed black fruits and earthy, iron-like aromas. Tannins were not as intense as in some of the more powerful wines of Cahors but were still typically dusty and chunky. As it opened, purer blackberry and plum emerged. Texture became more refined. Then, as the night wore on, country wine character returned, with aromas of tar and sun-baked rocks leading to a finish laced with hints of clay, leather and sour black cherries. An excellent value, this would be great to keep around for summer grilling. $17. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA.

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