Clos La Coutale 2012, Cahors, AOP, France

Tasting Note: After tasting so many Argentinean malbecs, I’m again reminded how the same grape grown in two different places can express itself so differently.

Try this and taste it for yourself. Pickup a bottle of French wine from Cahors (the French malbec-producing region) and taste it next to an Argentinean malbec.

French malbec from Cahors expresses itself much differently than malbec from South America.

The nose of the Clos La Coutale is distinctly French (an aroma characteristic one comes to recognize over time).

Its color is deep black and purple (thank you merlot which is also part of this blend).

The wine has subtle fruit but the fruit is not in the lead.

The wine begins in the back of your mouth with medium acidity making itself known.

The flavor begins and ends on the back of your tongue and there are also brief moments of flavor on the front and middle.

Could the merlot contribute to this balance?

Perhaps.

More Cahors tasting needed.

Bottle Note: Enjoy the generosity of 80% malbec combined with the finesse and roundness of 20% merlot. Philippe Bernede is proud to introduce to you the results of six generations of savoir faire, his passion for the wine, and to his unique terrior in the southwest of France. Serve at 63° F. Philippe Bernede, Viticultuteur – 46700 Vire-Sur-lot. Mis en bouteille a la propriete.