Domaine de la Baume - Fitou Terroir Saint Paul

Classification: AOP

Year: 2016

Alcohol: 14%

Grapes: Syrah, Grenache (couldn't find the % compositions... maybe 50/50?)

A very classy looking bottle. I would expect nothing less coming straight from Languedoc. There were a pleasant range of notes that could be made when I opened the bottle and let it breathe for a bit. Lots of red fruit scents, but there were some nice earthy and oaky scents too. More on the oaky side, but either way I could gather there would be some lovely flavours to this one.

The initial palet consists of deeper and dark fruits; primarily blackberry. Other sweeter berry flavours such as raspberry and cherry can be made at the beginning too (I also really like to use those flavours a lot don’t I!?). There are some very light smoky tastes of tobacco and liquorice can be made after the initial taste settles in. There are also some light earthy, mineral, and oaky notes too. Despite these wide range of flavours to be felt, the body of this wine does not feel that heavy on the taste buds. It is definitely full, and you can feel the flavours quite deep in your mouth. The body leans a bit more towards the smoky versus sweet side, especially later on, but there is still a nice decent mix of other sweet and earthy flavours in the body. The finish is a bit dry, and somewhat high in tannins. The aftertaste is a bit on the smoky side; not like smoking an entire pack of cigars druing a bachellor party kind of smokey, but you can feel that smokiness and a handfull of the smoky flavours from earlier linger in your mouth for quite a bit. There are also some hints of rosemary and thyme at the end too.

This one is quite a decent mix. This is another one of those wines you're better off casually sipping and letting the flavours develop and unfold within your mouth to really appreciate the range of flavours. The flavours are deep but not overpowering. The finish to this one is a bit n the smokier side for my tastes, but that's a minor complaint compared to the other range of flavours you'll experience with this wine. This is one I would recommend giving a shot if you like wines that pack a lot of deep flavours. This one is still good to casually pound back, but you may miss a lot of the flavours in drinking it that way.

Pairings: The official recommended pairings are red meats, stews, and strong cheeses. The smokiness to this one gave me impressions taht this would go good with BBQ food as well. I gave this a shot with some BBQ, black pepper, and cayenne pepper wings (homemade), and went down quite nice!

Overall Rating: 4 Languedoc Crosses out of 5

Where to Get: https://www.liquorconnect.com/Products/Stores/992867