Over the course of a week, I taste a bunch of wine, usually with friends, and almost always with my wife.  Here are some of the wines we tasted over the past few weeks. These are wines that were not sent as samples—in most cases, I actually paid for these wines (although a few have been given as gifts).

This week, the following list of reviews comes from the wines that we purchased while in France, first a couple of nights in Paris, then another four in Annecy, the beautiful French city on the banks of the lake with the same name.

2022 Château Maïme Côtes de Provence Rosé “Heritage”, France: At the hotel bar in Paris: 35€. 45% Grenache, 45% Cinsault, 10% Syrah. We were headed to dinner but we had a bit of time to kill. I asked the bartender for a suggestion and we landed here. Great choice. Even though it was a cold and rainy day in Paris, this was both delightfully refreshing and had enough body to warm us up a bit. Certainly darker in color than almost all Provençal rosés, that depth of color also seemed to translate into a depth of flavor. Fruity, with strawberry and cherry, mineral, and floral (rose, acacia) in the glass, it is a delight even before tasting. On the palate great fruit and considerable weight with a mineral note on the mid-palate and a chalky, salty finish. Excellent. 91 Points.

Our trip started in Paris for a couple of days in our familiar neighborhood of the @nd Arrondissement. This rosé from Provence was a lovely choice despite the cool temps (low 60s) and close to constant rain.

2020 Domaine des Rosiers Côte Rotie, Rhône Valley, France: Restaurant 80€. We found a tiny little place in the 2nd Arrondissement that would take a party of five well after the dinner crowd began arriving. The waiter, although quite French, was also quite the character, upselling at every possible point. The menu was decided slanted to the meat eater with every selection containing a portion of a previously living animal. Side of beef. T-Bone of veal. Roast pork. Tartare. Lotsa tartare. There was nary a fish to be found and only one dish that would have classified as “vegetarian” (although if I had mentioned that fact it probably would have been immediately stricken from the menu). I asked the waiter about his preference between a Saint Joseph (50€) and a Cornas (65€), and he immediately upsold me to this Côte Rôtie. Whoa.  Great fruit and intense spice on the nose, and I knew immediately that it would pair fabulously with the fare from the restaurant.  The palate? Dark fruit, even really dark on the palate, with spice and anice floral note. Lovely. Fruity, tart, nuanced, and more than an ounce of verve. Nice. Excellent. 92 Points.

The Côte Rôtie was great, the veal? Not so much.

The highlight of the evening meal was our waiter, who was quite the character and upsold us on the wine (which was not very hard to do).

2019 William Fevre Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume, Burgundy, France: Restaurant 65€. 100% Chardonnay. We were in Annecy and the whole family had just circumnavigated the lake by bike. It’s only 23 miles, but there is a decent climb involved and my sons, well, they are not the world’s greatest cyclists. At all. But they were good sports and also exhausted by the end of the ride. So by dinner time, they were both fast asleep. The plan was to meet at the restaurant, and we were already in town at our table, with a bottle of this Chablis well before they showed up (after several texts and a phone call). I would like to take credit for choosing this wine, but it was my wife who suggested it as I was focused on the local wines, naturally. Pale to yellow straw in the glass with an incredible nose of lemon curd, wet rock, and honeysuckle. Yowza. The palate is more enthralling with rich fruit, a balancing zinginess, a mineral element, great weight, and a boatload of verve. The lengthy finish only adds to the allure. Outstanding. 95 Points. 

WINE OF THE WEEK: We have been in France now for almost a week, and as one would expect, we have gone through quite a bit of wine. These are the only three formal tasting notes that I have written, however, since we have been with a dear friend and jotting down notes did not seem to be the most social of activities. Our hotel had what turned out to be a pretty good champagne, the non-vintage Tsarine Cuvée Premium Brut, a blend of 34% Chardonnay, 33% Pinot Noir, and 33% Pinot Meunier. Great body, nice creamy, croissant-like goodness, and an all-around nice wine. The hotel charged only 25€, so we bought four bottles, one for each night or our stay. Our hotel room included a balcony with a great view of the basilica and castle, which is where we popped the bottles with our dear frriend. How could it not be the Wine of the Week?

What was/were your Wine(s) of the Week?