Caves Bernard Massard - Luxembourgish white wine!

 After a lengthy stay in Paris in May, I took a train southeast to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It's a tiny country, just under a thousand square miles with less than 700,000 people...significantly smaller in population than Delaware and well under half Delaware's size. I visited the largest city, Luxembourg City, which is the home to the Parliament and the Grand Duke's palace. 

I joined a small group of folks to do a three-hour walking tour of the city, which included some samples of Luxembourgish wine. And since alcohol laws in Europe are not as Puritanical as in America, we could enjoy our refreshments outside on the main square without fear of the gendarmerie taking issue. 

The stuff we tried was Caves Bernard Massard, an estate located in Grevenmacher on the banks of the Mosel (Moselle) River. Calcium-rich clay soil and steep vineyards provide good sun and make spectacular white wines - like today's a Brut selection made of Chardonnay, Pinot blanc, and Pinot noir. I absolutely adore Pinot Blanc, as both a single varietal and in a mix, so I enjoyed this quite a bit. Refreshing, lightly acidic, and full of crisp and clean pear flavors. Very refreshing and perfect for a walkabout in an ancient European city!

Wine Tasting at Archibon - A True French Wine Experience!

Despite knowing a lot about wine, there's always more to learn and more to experience, so I booked a two-hour wine tasting event through AirBnB during my time in Paris. After walking from the 11th Arr. all the way to Sacre Coeur and through Montmartre, it was time for wine. 

Rue de Rougement

The event was held at a wine bar called "Archibon", owned by an ex-financier named Henri. The shop is located on Rue de Rougement, and of decent size, with wine crates lining one side and a series of small tables along the other. Like many of these AirBnB experiences, I was paired up with a motley group of other tourists, most of whom were American. 

After some explanation of French wine regions and a discussion about tasting notes, we dove into our spread. Along with bread, Henri served us five wines paired with five cheeses. The cheeses were:

• Saint-Félicien - soft white cheese made in the Rhone valley
• Ossau-Irraty -  cheese made of sheep's milk in the Pyrenees 
• Cantal - uncooked firm cheese produced in the Auvergne region
• Fourme d'Ambert - blue cheese from central France
• Truffled brie - made 50 kilometers east of Paris.

Henri says that these "classics" would likely be found at any Parisian cheese shop, such as those on the Rue de Bretagne in the Marais (not far from where I stay in the 10th near Jacques Bonsergeant), Rue Poncelet in the 17th Arr., by the Eiffel Tower, and of course those in Montmartre. 

I've loved French cheese for decades, thanks to my high school science teacher Mr. Sturgeon, who introduced me to "Say Cheese II", a now-defunct cheese shop on Farmington Avenue in West Hartford, CT. 

Onto the wine! We had the following in succession, with notes from Henri:

•  Sauvignon blanc from the Loire valley (Menetou-Salon) - a mix of lime / citrus / grapefruit, pear / peach / green apple and a bit of chalk 
• Chardonnay from Burgundy (Vezelay) - red apple / quince / honey, smoke / nuts and butter
• Gamay from Beaujolais (Cote de Brouilly) - red berries, floral - light-bodied 
• Pinot noir from Burgundy (Bourgogne Côte d'Or) - berries, plum / prune, smoke, pepper - medium-bodied 
• Syrah/Grenache blend from Vinsobres- this one reflects the common marriage between syrah and grenache: dark berries, prune, chocolate, medium-roast coffee.
• Cabernet / merlot blend from Bordeaux (Médoc - left bank) - oak / pepper, earthy flavors, currant / blueberry

A big part of the wine tasting was also the conversation - the group discussing their travels, their tasting notes, and how they enjoyed Paris. Really a perfect backdrop to a nice afternoon out, and next time I'm in Paris, I'll definitely be back to Archibon. You can find all the wines we tasted there, at 13 Rue Rougemont Paris, Île-de-France 75009.