I was really looking forward to the tasting at French Connection Wines (website), and it did not disappoint. Located on Hye-Albert Road the winery is perched on the top of a hill and offers amazing views. We’d opted for the Reserve Tasting with the charcuterie board. It reminded my partner in wine of summers in France. All that was missing was the hot baguette. In fact, we were so excited by the selections (including pâté) that I forgot to take a picture until we were half way through. See pictures at the bottom.
2021 La Connection Rosé
This is a blend of Mourvèdre and Grenache that drinks easily with flavors of white peach and yeast.
I reviewed the Rosé already, so you can read more here.
2019 Marsanne
It smelled like honey-nut cheerios to me – or honey butter with yeast. There’s a little citrus to the scent too. It was great with the comté (a semi-hard white cheese) and excellent with the pâté. The wine is full-bodied by not heavy. You can taste a bit of the oak aging, but its not overpowering. I liked the smell and wrote “yum!” as a note on the flavor. I’d hold on to it for a Friday night with Chicken Francaise.
2019 La Connection White Blend
This smelled like honeysuckle. It’s a blend of Marsanne, Roussanne, Vermentino, Viognier and Picpoul Blanc. And has that sweet tart flavor like a good white Burgundy. It was excellent with the pâté, which brought out an apricot flavor. And obviously the Apricot brought out the apricot flavor too. It’s very nice and very drinkable. We were recommended to pair it with seared scallops. I’d also recommend pairing this Wednesday wine with your wine-snob in-laws.
Counoise
Je t’aime Counoise! Only 23 acres of this grape are planted in Texas and the grapes are grown by Farmhouse Vineyards from vines planted in 2019. There are not a lot of tannins in this wine and it is unfiltered. It looks like strawberry lemonade in the glass – and smells a bit like it too. There’s some watermelon flavor that comes out. It was great with the comté. This is a date night wine – so two bottles came home with me.
2019 Chateauneuf De Hye
Strawberry scented and flavored, this wine was a beautiful color. Despite the scent of strawberry and light strawberry flavor – it had more blackberry and current flavors. It’s a table wine with its blend of Mourvèdre, Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan. It will go with anything. The caper made it sweet, so I’d put this with a salmon with caper butter sauce on a Wednesday night or an impress your in-laws on Sunday with Beef Wellington, or impress your friends on Saturday night with a grilled pork loin glazed in stoneground mustard.
2019 Syrah
This Syrah should be decanted before serving and I can see why. It has a subtle but bold flavor. Red fruit and floral on the scent with a little light raspberry on the taste. The peppers brought out this wine’s sweetness. It was recommended for lamb chops. However, I’d pair this with meatloaf on a Wednesday night.
2019 Petite Syrah Reserve
I didn’t manage to get a picture of this one, but as you can tell, the labels are pretty plain. This wine was aged in 22 months in new French Oak puncheons and neutral barriques. The grapes are from La Pradera Vineyards. This had a coriander/curry underlying scent on first sniff. But it’s fruity and dry tasting. Excellent with the pâté and comté. The mustard brings out the fruit. This Wednesday wine needs beef – even if it’s just Bœuf Bourgignon. (AKA Beef Stew)
Final Thoughts
Had it not been for the talk of tractors and Angus cattle, I could have pretended to be in the south of France. But the country music in the background (tastefully quiet enough) and the drawls around me kept the illusion from being too real. However, I will return to French Connection wines to enjoy a glass/bottle and watch the sunset. I might even stay in one of their maisonnettes (little cabins). [more here] I wish I could have brought more home with me, but it just gives me an excuse to go back.
