Ridley Scott has produced some amazing movies, including Aliens, Black Hawk Down, and Gladiator, which have taken me on epic nail-biting adventures over the years. Then there was the movie he produced about love and wine. Based on the glorious Peter Mayle book, the movie A Good Year stars Russel Crowe and the brilliant Albert Finney and tells the story of an overworked and jaded London trader who unexpectedly inherits a vineyard in southern France. As you can probably imagine, the charming French countryside as well as a beautiful local woman eventually work their way into his heart and convince him to turn his back on city life and begin making wine. And that’s how his life becomes good.
The young Russel Crow stars in 'A Good Year' based on the book by Peter Mayle
The location for the film is the picturesque Chateau La Canorgue in the Rhone Valley, which also happens to be the same chateau where today’s wine is from. The Margan family who owns the property thought it was a wonderful thing to be featured in the film at first. But now, after 10 years of fans regularly turning up unannounced, they are ready to move on with their own good life! (Their website begs film fans to leave them to winemaking.) Despite these interruptions, however, the family still manages to produce the most wonderful wines, which are also an incredible value. You may have tried their red, which we love and have featured over the years. When we tasted the recent vintage of their white, we were bowled over. In fact, we took a case to a summer garden party this weekend and it was devoured before we could pour ourselves a second glass.
Chateau La Canorgue Blanc 2020 ($22) is a scrumptious blend of Bourboulenc, Clairette, Marsanne, and Roussanne grapes. Some Rhone whites, if the vintage is too hot or the vineyard not well managed, can be a little flabby around the edges as they struggle to keep the acids in the grapes. This wine, however, is so bright and wonderfully complex it is pure joy. It is full of exotic fruits, kumquat and apples, and has a weight and flavor that just sits in your mouth and transports you to a sunny terrace, shaded by an ancient olive tree and surrounded by lavender and the sound of cicadas. The good life indeed!
TRY A SELECTION OF OUR FAVORITE WHITES!
With the days getting longer and warmer, we’ve been making up a lot of mixed cases of whites for our Wine Friends. Along with La Canorgue, we have some other wonderful whites from France as well as Austria and Italy, and we’d be happy put together a fun selection to restock your fridge and cellar in anticipation of more sunny days ahead. Available in 6 or 12 bottles. Just ask for 'mixed whites' when you order.
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