Domaine des Bastides 'Vin Cuit'
Our Price: $55. Buy here.
The magical Yuletide elixir of Provence — and one of Vintage Berkeley customers' perennial favorite single wines — is back! Reserve yours today!
Our Price: $55. Buy here.
The magical Yuletide elixir of Provence — and one of Vintage Berkeley customers' perennial favorite single wines — is back! Reserve yours today!
Quantities VERY limited!
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You Can Keep Your Chestnuts in an Open Fire...
Us? We'll Take Vin Cuit!
It's back: the Provençal Christmas wine that has all but come a Berkeley tradition: Vin cuit. A rare beast anywhere, (with little made and even less exported) but on these shores? It's practically a sleigh-guiding unicorn!
Deep golden amber in hue, with a complexity of flavor that you may never have experienced before (think: apricots, toasted orange peel, almonds, quince paste, prunes, roasted coffee, hazelnuts, dates, campfire smoke... and about 10-20 more layers beyond those), it's perhaps as great a thing to have on hand in December as we know.
Traditionally it's served at Christmas feasts in Provence to pair with all thirteen of their 'lei tretze dessèrts'! Some say the desserts symbolize the year's end (12 months + 1 'petit mois' [little month] made up of the 12 days of Christmas); others argue that it represents Christ + his 12 apostles.
Us? We say you don't need an elaborate symbolic register to enjoy something this glorious! Just an intact frontal lobe and a robust capacity for sensual delight!
Us? We'll Take Vin Cuit!
It's back: the Provençal Christmas wine that has all but come a Berkeley tradition: Vin cuit. A rare beast anywhere, (with little made and even less exported) but on these shores? It's practically a sleigh-guiding unicorn!
Deep golden amber in hue, with a complexity of flavor that you may never have experienced before (think: apricots, toasted orange peel, almonds, quince paste, prunes, roasted coffee, hazelnuts, dates, campfire smoke... and about 10-20 more layers beyond those), it's perhaps as great a thing to have on hand in December as we know.
Traditionally it's served at Christmas feasts in Provence to pair with all thirteen of their 'lei tretze dessèrts'! Some say the desserts symbolize the year's end (12 months + 1 'petit mois' [little month] made up of the 12 days of Christmas); others argue that it represents Christ + his 12 apostles.
Us? We say you don't need an elaborate symbolic register to enjoy something this glorious! Just an intact frontal lobe and a robust capacity for sensual delight!
Our favorite version? Unquestionably the one made by the all-organic Domaine les Bastides, whose winemaker Carole Salen carefully simmers Grenache juice in a cauldron over a wood fire for hours on end, stirring it constantly to ensure it never reaches a boil (which would kill the yeasts).
Once the wine has reduced by 25-30%, the juice is chilled and transferred to slowly ferment (it's alive! it's still alive!)... at which point the wine is filtered and bottled just before the holidays.
Once the wine has reduced by 25-30%, the juice is chilled and transferred to slowly ferment (it's alive! it's still alive!)... at which point the wine is filtered and bottled just before the holidays.
Who says Christmas miracles aren't real? This is quite simply one of the rarest, richest, most elegant beauties in the world of wine! It's only made in good vintages; there are only 150 cases made, total... and less than 15 of those make it to California!
What's more? While it's a naturally made wine, sourced from 100% organic fruit, not fortified with spirits, and made without the addition of sulfur, this wine is preposterously stable once opened! (It will easily last open for a month or more, should anyone manage not to drink it!) This makes it an especially fun wine during December, as it can roll from one dinner to the next, and evolves gloriously over days.
Find out what rabid vin cuit-ophile Thomas Jefferson knew (he brought cases of the stuff home from Provence! O the days before checked baggage restrictions!): this is as special, unique, and delicious a vinous Christmas gift as is possible to give.
What's more? While it's a naturally made wine, sourced from 100% organic fruit, not fortified with spirits, and made without the addition of sulfur, this wine is preposterously stable once opened! (It will easily last open for a month or more, should anyone manage not to drink it!) This makes it an especially fun wine during December, as it can roll from one dinner to the next, and evolves gloriously over days.
Find out what rabid vin cuit-ophile Thomas Jefferson knew (he brought cases of the stuff home from Provence! O the days before checked baggage restrictions!): this is as special, unique, and delicious a vinous Christmas gift as is possible to give.
(All purchases come with a fun, informative, VB-penned description of both the wine's history and its capacity for astonishment... along with ideas for Provençal pairings! It makes this as perfect for gifting as it is for drinking!)