Reviewed by
Evelyn
If you’re interested in trying out new wines, why not consider a wine subscription box? One of the most popular wine boxes are My Vitibox and all of the wines that you’ll receive as a subscriber are hand-picked by the famed sommelier Alain Gousse (former head sommelier to many Michelin-starred restaurants including La Tour d’Argent and Le Crillon). This means that you’re always going to receive high-quality wines every month and it’s a great way to discover something new.
The wines are sent in sturdy shockproof boxes and in addition to the bottles of wine, you’ll also receive a full Tasting Notes booklet which shows you how to taste, smell and appreciate the wines like a true connoisseur, and there’s a detailed history about where and how the wines have been produced.
June’s My Vitibox is a celebration of exceptional fruity French wines to mark the start of Summer, and I received one bottle of red and one of white as part of the ‘Colours and Flavours’ subscription. Being a fan of fruity wines, I couldn’t wait to get the corkscrew out and taste these two!
Les Racines 2014, Château du Vieux Puit, Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux
This gourmet red wine comes from the popular Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux appellation and is produced by the Bouillac family who has been making wines for over fifty years. The family are considered to be among the best winemakers in all of Bordeaux and their speciality lies in great attention to the detail and decades of tried and tested knowledge when it comes to cultivating different varieties of grapes.
To demonstrate this expertise, this bottle of Les Racines 2014 showcases a rich and flavourful quadruple grape blend which features 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Malbec, 4% Petit Verdot and 80% Merlot. I don’t think I’ve tasted a wine before that features so many different grape varieties all in one bottle!
The resulting wine is a beautiful shiny Garnet red colour in the glass, and it has a pleasant fruity and spicy aroma with strong hints of Blackberry, Cherry, Prunes, Cocoa, Pepper, Licorice, Oak and Smoke. Taste-wise, this is a dry yet fresh and medium-bodied wine, with a strong flavour of tannins and a smooth texture. It’s a lot more intense than most red wines that I would choose for myself, but it pairs well with many meals (think grilled meats, veggies and sweet potatoes) and makes for an enjoyable drink alongside your evening dinner.
L’Absolu de Gravas 2014, Château de Gravas, Graves
Moving onto the white wine in the box, this bottle comes from the famed Château de Gravas terroir which is located just next to the prestigious village of Barsac. The area is well known for its exceptional environment which is perfect for growing the finest grapes, resulting in the finest wines!
This vintage L’Absolu de Gravas 2014 is made from an expert blend of 75% Semillon and 25% Sauvignon which gives the wine a shiny Golden yellow colour as you can see in the glass above. To the nose, it has a pleasant floral and fruity aroma that feels very summery.
To taste it though was very different from what I was expecting. With it having such a high percentage of Semillon grapes, I thought it would be much sweeter, but when combined with the Sauvignon Blanc grapes, the end result is actually a bone-dry, medium-bodied wine. It has quite an acidic aftertaste, but the powerfully fruity notes of Lime, Grapefruit and Saturn Peach with hints of Vanilla and Hazelnut, made it incredibly pleasant to drink, especially on a hot summer’s day. This wine pairs well with any kind of Seafood dish and also goes well with cheeses like Emmental and fruity desserts such as Apricot Pie. Delicious!
If you enjoy the wines that you’re sent by My Vitibox, you can take advantage of a generous 15% subscriber-only discount off any cases of the wines that are featured in the monthly subscription boxes – a great way to stock up for the Summer.
