Wendy and her husband, Gabe, are currently in the Aude/Languedoc-Roussillon region in France. The French have been making wine in this region for hundreds of years yet only recently has it emerged as a hot "new" wine region. But I think Wendy says it best:
"So we've been enjoying all the good, cheap wine in France. We're staying in Couiza in the Aude/Languedoc-Roussillon region. To the northeast of us a small region called Minervois, and they blend some good reds. We went to this fabulous one-star restaurant (1 Michelin star/20 Euro prix fixe) and they gave us a half bottle of a Minervois red (we didn't get the full winery name -- Jean something might be the guy who runs it) for all of 5 Euros ($7). So we bought the bottle in the pic at the local grocery store for under 3E, and it was pretty good table wine. It's a mix of grapes -- very mild. They have great descriptions on the back of bottles here (I'll take a pic next time)."
I looked up the wine on wine-searcher.com and unfortunately I could not find it anywhere in the U.S. based on the name I took off the label. In some ways, though, that's one of the beautiful things about enjoying wine in the country where it comes from. You're likely to come across something you can't get in your home country which makes the experience even more special.
Why didn't I try to pack myself in Wendy N.'s suitcase?!?
Before I sign off, please take a moment to vote for my blog at wine-searcher.com. I'd love to have it move up the list! And for my retired friends, you know you have the time to vote often - very often.
Until Wendy N.'s next sniff, sip or quaff (she's on sabbatical and I've been super busy at work so she'll definitely be sipping sooner than me!),
Cheers,
Alli M.