red wine.

x-fact ~ the label says to serve this red slightly chilled to "enjoy its soft and expressive array of ripe red and black fruits." yeah, i'll let you know how that pans out.

colombelle red wine 2006
paid 7.99
reg. 9.99

vin de pays des cotes de gascogne is a region in france. not the name of the wine. this wine is made mostly of the tannat grape, 60%, blended with 20% merlot, and another 20% cabernet.

okay, so let's cut to the chase with the slightly chilling.

yes, it worked.

it was round and smooth and smacky and juicy and syrupy right at the first sip. darlings, it's delicious.

after the second and subsequent sips it mellows out a bit, it's still round and juicy, but even smoother and the smacky and the juicy gives way to simple, unadorned lush.

this is more than a sexy wine. this is a come hither wine. this wine not only turns your head but it beckons you forth as well.

if this wine was a person it would be a stranger who stops you in the supermarket, drugstore, hardware store and says "i know we've never met, but you have to know that my whole life has come to this and i need to take you for a drink and to sit across the table and flirt with you mercilessly for an hour straight. truly, that's all i need and my life is complete. say yes."

actually if this wine was a person it would be you, because you would say yes.

this wine has a beautiful color. swirly girly color with legs for miles down the glass.

i am enjoying this wine so much solo, i don't know what i would drink this wine with food wise. something simple and snacky? yet, polished. please god, not sliced cheddar and a triscuit.

better, the trite but true brie and grapes with a water cracker, perhaps a firm blue cheese with a sour cherry pomegranate spread, or a creamy blue with some fresh honeycomb alongside.

oddly enough, the exact cheese pairings i served when i catered a big birthday party for a friend this weekend. the only difference is i'm not working right now. i actually have time to sit and have a bite and a sip. not a needy guest in sight or the three inch heeled boots i insisted on wearing while working for 8 hours straight (makes all the difference in the world when you are sweaty and working your ass off) on my feet.

life. is. good.

and i can walk again! hallelujah!

and had this wine been at that party i may have had no choice but to abandon my duties in favor of the siren call of this wine. a bottle tucked under one arm and platter of cheese in the other hand, i'd find the quietest corner and go to work. and by work i mean sipping and nibbling and leaning against the wall in satisfaction.

thankfully for my friend and her party guests (though not for my feet) this wine was not at the party.

but i needed only to wait a few days and now i have a party of my own. and not a loud drunk overly made up and underly equipped with anything resembling the ability to act remotely like a lady with any amount of alcohol in her system and smells like an unventilated hair salon on a hot day girl. in. sight.

well, i do have a few glasses to go...

uh, and, buh dump bump.

throw a party for two with a few posh nibbles and your own "stranger." and a bottle of this wine, mais oui.

beware, it is a screw top, the color is all kinds of wrong, and the label is cheesy. so don't serve it from the bottle. better to chill it slightly first in the bottle and then decant it to a different serving vessel.

it needn't be fancy, a simple glass carafe will do. or if you want fancy, bust out and dust off that fancy pants decanter that's been hanging around at the back of the cupboard and you never thought you'd use in a million years.

however it gets served it will be well received.

and the praise and adoration, the worship, will be yours to do with what you wish.

(as will, perhaps, the stranger. non?)

tendres baisers!

x.