Sancerre

[Anne]

Asked hubby about "full-bodied" whites . He translated it by "puissant" . He says that this applies to :

- All white Bourgognes
- Côtes du Rhône blanc : Hermitage, St Joseph, Chateau-neuf-du Pape .
- Alsace : riesling, pinot gris and gewürtztraminer .

All these are dry whites, except for gewürz which is sweet (for apéritif, foie gras, dessert, ... love it !) .

He cannot help about Sancerre or other Loire wines since we happen to never drink any .

Re. kir : most restaurants will indeed use rather cheap wines for kir . And kir royal is more often than not made with mousseux instead of champagne . But that doesn't really shock anyone since most people usually do the same at home, not to save money but because it is considered as a shame and a huge waste to spoil a really good wine or champagne on a kir .

[andi]

I am thinking that Ian would have a good word or two to add to this thread, then wondering if he is ok? We have not heard from him in a while

[Anne]

Yes, I have been wondering too ...

I seem to remember him talking lately about health issues in the family (?) .

[sistereurope]

Thank you Gitte and Anne for the lesson. I will study some more so that I can at least steer my mom toward a white that she might like! Then again, it's her first trip to Paris...if she wants to drink red wine the whole time, who am I to stop her?!?!?

I share your thoughts about Ian...here's hoping that all's well with him and his family...

[roundtowngirl]

I decided to order a case of Domaine Andre Neveu 2003 Sancerre Le Grand Fricambault. It cost around $18.00 a bottle. I was lucky enough to find a specialty wine/beer shop in Columbus and they were able to order it for me. I've handed them out but haven't heard any comments yet. I'm sure we're all saving them for Christmas or some other special day.

I did find two interesting facts about Sancerre. It can be a white or red wine. The white is made with sauvignon grapes while the red falls more under pinot noir. A white Sancerre should be served around 52F.

An interesting story...while at Le Souffle we were seated next to a group of French and English couples. I overheard a French man talking about selecting the wines for dinner and he deferred the choices to the lady next to him. He said that he learned two things growing up - that French women are amazing cooks and that they are highly skilled in selecting wines to pair with meals. She laughed and commented that her mother and grandmother both spent many hours with her and her sisters teaching them about good food and good wine.
She did proceed to order two bottles of Sancerre to accompany their dinner.

Forget exercising as a New Year's resolution...I'm going to resolve to learn more about wine. Let the tasting parties begin!!!