A blend of 60% Tannat, 20% Cabernet Franc and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is a dark and inky red in color. Some plum and black cherry on the nose, but a little flat. On the palate it is very well-balanced (if a bit hollow) — strong tannins but also fruity with some plum, blueberry, and dark currant and some black olive. Powerful, yet quite approachable — this is a very good value at $10-12 a bottle. 14.03.2008
Alcohol: 14%
Tannat is a red wine grape, historically grown in South West France in the Madiran AOC and is now one of the most prominent grapes in Uruguay, where it is considered the "national grape". It is also grown in Argentina, Australia and in Italy's Puglia region where it is used as a blending grape. In the US state of Virginia, there are small experimental plantings of the vine. Tannat wines produced in Uruguay are usually quite different in character from Madiran wines, being lighter in body and lower in tannins. It is also used to make Armagnac and full bodied rosé. In France, efforts to solve the harsh tannic nature of the grape lead to the development of the winemaking technique known as micro-oxygenation.
A French Tannat is characterized by its firm, tannic structure with raspberry aromas and the ability to age well. They often have a deep dark color with high level of alcohol. The rosés produced in Irouléguy go through very limited maceration time with the skins in order to keep the wines from getting too tannic. The resulting wines are typically full bodied and very fruity.
