Three red grapes, one red wine

1) A self descriptive grape anyway you look at it

TANNAT - The red grape of the Madiran region in France is not for the faint of heart. It is best known for its massive tannic structure, hence its name, but also provides intense color, acidity and when ripe, wonderful flavors. In the past as a varietal wine, its fruit has had a tendency to diminish before its tannins have had enough time to soften, making it often coarse and rustic. With improved canopy management in the vineyard and improved tannin management in the winery, the wines from this grape have become more approachable and refined.  Aside from its indigenous niche in Madiran, Tannat has found favor in a second home far away in Uruguay, brought over by French immigrants. It is also developing a small and faithful following in Virginia.

In this Énigme blend, 20% Tannat is used to provide structural muscle as well as complexing the flavor profile.

2) Sounds as if it might go with a certain cheese

CHAMBOURCIN – Bertille Seyve developed this hybrid of unknown parents (he didn’t take notes) in the Loire region of France, around the turn of the twentieth century. It has become one of the most popular reds that came to be produced during the period of French hybridization. These crosses between American and French grapes, were made to combine the hardiness and disease resistance of the New World with the quality of the Old World, to help French vineyards recover after the devestating phylloxera epidemic during the late 1800’s. Now of minor importance and banned in some areas of France, they ended up becoming an important catalyst for making quality wine in the colder regions of the Western Hemisphere. A few have become stars in their own right. Chambourcin is known for its distinctive fruity, often jammy nose and flavor, its soft tannins, high acidity and unparalleled beautiful, inky dark color. It can be a big wine, only falling a bit short in its tannic intensity, but suited for the additions of other grapes more well endowed in that area.

Making up 40% of this blend it provides the predominant flavor.

3) Small but big. Important but minor

PETIT VERDOT – A small berried grape that is big on flavor, color, and tannic structure. Petit Verdot is a minor variety in its home region of Bordeaux in France where acreage pales next to the “Big Three”, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Acreage in the region is actually declining along with that of another minor variety, Malbec. In Virginia, its importance is rising, fast assuming the same role that Cabernet Sauvignon occupies in Bordeaux, as the dominant big red variety but more suited for our climate. It is very capable of making a wonderful wine bearing its own name, or being used as a blender, using its attributes to complement other reds, particularily Cabernet Franc.

Petit Verdot is perhaps the most complete, stand on its own wine, of the three in this blend and as such provides the foundation on which to build and the connectivity to bring the parts to a whole. It makes up 40% of the blend.