Cinsault
We're right on the Mediterranean shoreline today to drink wines made from Cinsault, but we decided to go off the beaten path. Anyone can enjoy Cinsault in Provence or Languedoc-Roussillon or even buried deep in some of the wines of Chateauneuf du Pape, but we've decided to go to Oran in the far northern part of Algeria on the Mediterranean Sea.
The weather is warm and dry and while it can get quite hot (as much as 45C/113F), more commonly, daytime highs in the winter average around 17C/62F while summer highs tend to be nearer to 30C/86F. It's fairly humid for a desert country, but the rain that Oran gets is just enough to grow our Cinsault without fancy irrigation methods, but nowhere near enough to ruin the crop.
Interestingly, Oran was once what we would think of as a vacation home for royalty during the Ottoman Empire, so much of the scenery that we can see from the vineyards consists of fairly tall harem towers where the concubines were kept.
Our wine today is not the red wine that most Americans think of. It's lighter and more floral than fruity in bouquet. The tannins are fairly minimal and quite soft, acidity is fairly low, and alcohol levels generally low as well, particularly in the Algerian versions where harvest tends to occur early. So, usually, drink these wines on the young side, certainly no more than about five years after harvest.
On the palate, the fruit is bright as we get red currants, raspberries, sour cherry, violet and lavender, and black tea. If you read the wine and food pairing textbook, it will tell you to pair your Cinsault with escargot bourgignon, but I don't get it. Instead, pair it with stews and lightly braised beef dishes.
The weather is warm and dry and while it can get quite hot (as much as 45C/113F), more commonly, daytime highs in the winter average around 17C/62F while summer highs tend to be nearer to 30C/86F. It's fairly humid for a desert country, but the rain that Oran gets is just enough to grow our Cinsault without fancy irrigation methods, but nowhere near enough to ruin the crop.
Interestingly, Oran was once what we would think of as a vacation home for royalty during the Ottoman Empire, so much of the scenery that we can see from the vineyards consists of fairly tall harem towers where the concubines were kept.
Our wine today is not the red wine that most Americans think of. It's lighter and more floral than fruity in bouquet. The tannins are fairly minimal and quite soft, acidity is fairly low, and alcohol levels generally low as well, particularly in the Algerian versions where harvest tends to occur early. So, usually, drink these wines on the young side, certainly no more than about five years after harvest.
On the palate, the fruit is bright as we get red currants, raspberries, sour cherry, violet and lavender, and black tea. If you read the wine and food pairing textbook, it will tell you to pair your Cinsault with escargot bourgignon, but I don't get it. Instead, pair it with stews and lightly braised beef dishes.
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