Yes, We Did Inhale… This Gamay
Dan was back in Portland for a brief visit a couple of weeks ago. We had plenty to catch up on and needed something to lubricate the conversation. It was a no-brainer, something we both adore: La Paroisse Coup de Foudre.
We made quick work of that bottle... practically inhaling the contents in a few delicious gulps. Tasting this with Jean-Claude, back in January, he said the 2023 vintage is one of the best in recent history; consider our rate of consumption a ringing endorsement of that claim.
The downside? We ran out of wine well before we ran out of conversation, and I didn't have another bottle handy. So we were left, staring longingly at empty glasses as we conversed. Fortunately, I've ensured you won't suffer the same fate--I've got a tidy stack of it for all of you in the warehouse.
Many of you know and love this wine--it's not hard to understand why. It is everything we look for, both in terms of what's in the glass and what's behind that. What's in the glass speaks for itself: a pure, elegant, and complete wine that always leaves you wanting more. It's juicy, fresh, and poised, a perfect example of great Gamay. Behind all that, Jean-Claude is an able steward of his vineyards and winemaking heritage; the 9th generation to be crafting wines from these vineyards in the little town of Renaison. All the while, he's thinking about the next generation, so that wines like this continue to get made.
When I visited Jean-Claude this past winter, he was hard at work preparing a new plot for the next generation, adding to his vineyards of vieilles vignes (45+ years), very vieilles vignes (90+ years), and extremely vieilles vignes (planted in 1878!!)
That night, Jean-Claude opened up 5 vintages of his wines for comparison, and much like the recent evening with Dan, by the end of the evening, the bottles of 2023 were empty.
La Paroisse Cote Roannaise 'Coup de Foudre' 2023
Following WWII, Jean-Claude's grandfather purchased several foudres--large 1000-liter barrels (in the photo above)--and they have been in continuous use since then. This is the winery's House style, of sorts. Grapes for this wine come from those very Vieilles Vignes that were planted back in the 1930s. Now close to 100 years old, they give a complex, succulent Gamay that is satin-y from the year spent in the foudres.
The 2023 vintage was exceptional for Domaine de la Paroisse, and the Coup de Foudre is a prime example of the poise and energy that Jean-Claude captures in the bottle. My notes highlight the dark fruit, supple texture, and finish that lasted and lasted. A glorious bottle of Gamay for the price.
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This wine is a real treasure--90+ year-old vines, careful farming and winemaking, liquid delight in the glass--and we consider it an honor to import wines like these. The only thing better is drinking them! And with the Holidays right around the corner, you'll want to have a few of these around for the coming months.