Saturday, April 21, 2018

Pick a Picpoul to enjoy al Fresco This Summer #FrenchWinophiles

This month, we at the French Winophiles, are showcasing Picpoul de Pinet.  Picpoul is a grape grown in the Languedoc region of France.  This exploration is being hosted by Cam of Culinary Adventures with Camilla.  Cam gave us a little Sneak Peek of the event.


I went to my closest local wine store.  The owner there is wonderful and will search out any wines that I need for these groups to which I belong.  I told him I needed Picpoul.  He was not familiar with this wine but looked it up and told me he would work on getting me some along with the other wines that were on my list.

About a week later, he contacted me and said that my wines were in however his distributor had no more Picpoul and did not know when he would get more as Picpoul has a very limited bottling.  His distributor had told him that only 900 cases of Picpoul are bottled each year.

I thought I was going to have to take a trip down to the City and try my luck there but then I got the great news that we were all being sent samples of this wine.  I received two bottles of Picpoul de Pinet.  



Today, I am showcasing the 2016 bottling from Cave de Pomerols.  It sells on Wine.com for $11.99 per bottle.  I received no monetary compensation for this post and all opinions expressed are completely my own.

I have yet to open the bottle from Gerard Bertrand.  I am hoping to invite our friend, Gassan, who owns the local wine store, over to taste this wine with us just as soon as our remodel is completed.



I did share the bottle of Cave de Pomerols with our friends, the Bendas.  I served it with a Rustic Shrimp Cocktail and it paired perfectly however I think this wine is wonderful all by itself.

It pours a beautiful golden yellow.  It is crisp and dry but very smooth with no acidic bite.  It smells like a garden to me.  The first sip was very surprising as I am not use to such distinct floral undertones.  I LOVED it.  Which really kind of surprised me because I have always preferred "oaky" whites.

The first thing I thought, upon tasting this wine, was how wonderful it was going to be relaxing by the pool with a glass.  It is like sipping Summertime.  

Picpouls are known for their perfect pairings with seafood of all sorts.  The smooth floralness (is that a word?  It is now) neutralizes the salt and iodine found in shellfish.  I think it would be amazing with raw oysters.  I was hoping to do so when I open the next bottle but the "r" months are nearly over so I will wait until the fall and order up a few more bottles.

I'm very anxious to see what the others thought.  I am including links to all of their articles so you can check them out.  You are also invited to join us as we discuss our pairings today at 11 AM ET on twitter using #Winophiles and #Languedocwines.

More posts on Picpoul de Pinet

16 comments:

  1. You're right Wendy, oysters would be great with Picpoul. And your shrimp cocktail sounds like it was delicious too! Hope you like the other bottle as much as you enjoyed this one.

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  2. Sounds like the Cave de Pomerols Picpoul was lovely Wendy. I'm curious about it not having an acidic bite. Perhaps the grapes were more ripe, the growing year, who knows. Bottom line it worked!

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  3. Easy shrimp cocktail with Picpoul sounds great. It just strikes me as a casual wine to be enjoyed anytime, especially in the middle of a remodel!

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  4. What a cool story about your wine shop. I’m certain the proprietor will appreciate the invitation. Wine shops are such gems - a great partner in learning, tasting , exploring!

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    1. Yes and a rare gem in my neck of the woods so I was very pleased to locate him.

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  5. I can see Picpoul would be very good with shrimp cocktail!

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  6. I would also happily sup this w some oysters! It looks delightful with the shrimp as well.

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    1. Hey 'sup. LOL. It was great with the shrimp. I have gotten tons of pairing ideas this month.

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  7. Picpoul and seafood are a winning combination! Oysters and Picpoul are my next pairing. Cheers!

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  8. Great pairing Wendy. Simple, elegant, easy, delicious. Well done as usual!

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