Bourgueil “Cuvée Prestige,” Domaine Guion (Stéphane Guion) 2005
$14. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Fruits of the Vines, New York, NY.
First off, fourteen bucks? This is a seriously good value, especially given that, as mentioned above, it is the estate’s more elaborate wine (the “Domaine” bottling goes for $11). A bright, translucent red with violet highlights, it shines that slightly surreal color of raspberry sorbet – the natural stuff, not the dyed blue variety. Brett is the first thing that greets the nose, savory more than off-putting, attractive in its fresh-stomped aromas of the barnyard. The wine’s not flawless but it’s all the more interesting for its crooks and freckles.
Blackberries, slightly under ripe black cherries and a muddle of green and black peppercorns first strike the palate and are echoed on the nose once past the wine’s Brett-driven pungency. Slightly sour acidity and a taut, narrow tannic profile make this a wine for the table, for sure; delicious with my pork chop but more than a little challenging as an easy sipping wine. Again, that complicated essence is one of the qualities that most endears me to good Loire Cabernet Franc.
As things open up and settle in, the wine’s blue- and red-fruited nature comes to the fore – plums, blueberries, boysenberries…. And yes, it’s also very floral, with a nose not unlike the slightly rustic side of cool vintage Northern Rhône Syrah – hothouse flowers, baking spices, berry fruit and animal aromatics. Fourteen bucks? Yep, I could happily drink this on a regular basis.
