Bottle of the week: A toothsome French blend that'll make you say 'cheese'

24 August 2016 - 09:20 By Neil Pendock

Bottle of the Week: Vrede en Lust Côtes de Savoye 2014 How much and where?R79; www.getwine.co.zaWhy?The best reason for a trip to Franschhoek is to load up on imported French cheese at the La Cotte bottlestore and cheesery of Lodine and Ludwig Maske. One of the must-buys is Tomme de Savoie from the French Alps, a tangy cow's milk cheese with a grey rind.Cheese and wine may be a cliche, but the combination works and on the way to Franschhoek you'll whizz past Vrede en Lust, Dutch for Peace and Passion, which sounds like an oxymoron.The farm was established at the end of the 17th century by a Tomme de Savoie-eating Huguenot named Jacques so their flagship red is called Côtes de Savoye, naturally.A toothsome blend of syrah and grenache with a splash of viognier, it is light in colour and fruity of mein. Exuberant strawberries with spicy black pepper make it a versatile companion to a cheese board, and currently discounted 20% by the Getwine Wegner brothers, the modest price is a welcome cushion to imported cheese price inflation. An elegant gold screwcap even makes a corkscrew superfluous to requirements.What could be a more perfect way to welcome spring than a glass of savoury Savoye red and a chunk of cow's milk Savoie cheese? This is an affordable luxury that everyone deserves.Rating: ********* Richlieu (cardinal)**** Mazarin (cardinal)*** Louis XIV (king)** Piaf (little sparrow, singer)* Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu (actor)..

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