History of Whom You Know: Whom You Know Celebrates Our Fifth Birthday with 2011 Domaine Houchart Cotes de Provence Rouge Imported by David Milligan Selections #5 in the Hit Parade of Five Fine French Wines for Five Fantastic Years!
A Tuesday that feels like a Monday in a week where one needs to accomplish in four days what you'd usually do in five calls for one smashing wine and our friends Alex and David have excellent taste. That's not news though; this is the latest in their hit parade. Of the five wines we tried from them to celebrate our five years at Whom You Know, Peachy Deegan liked 2011 Domaine Houchart Cotes de Provence Red the best. Its full flavor and smooth taste is exactly what you want to look forward to at the end of the day. It is of ideal complexity with its blend of 30% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 20% Cinsault. Domaine Houchart is located at the foot of Mount St Victoire near Aix en Provence, in France bien sur. This region is part of the new, higher level, appellation" Cotes de Provence, St Victoire". Domaine Houchart is today owned by Geneviève, the wife of Jérôme Quiot, having been originally acquired by her great-grandfather. We love this family history.
The vines of Domaine Houchart
During the period of the 1850' s, Aurelien Houchart was an energetic proprietor
and negociant in wine, and created one of the largest domains in Provence. Amongst the friends of Aurelien
Houchart was the famous painter Cezanne, who frequently came to visit. The 200
acre estate is planted with 10 traditional grape varieties on soils of red
clay, sandstone, gravel and chalk and produces 55% Rose, 40 % Red and 5% White
wines
We found the clarity to be stunning and the color inviting. Deep notes of plum and dark berries crisply awaited us in each elegant glass. Maturity added depth and every sip was indeed a celebration.
Cotes de Provence Rouge
A blend of 30% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cinsault with an average age of 30 years.
A delightful fruity, but well structured, Red, as 20% of the vats are bled for the Rose, which provides more concentration. Aged for 10 to 12 months in barrels and large vats.
Alex says on Facebook: My father started this delightful company back in 1995. Since then we have striven to bring you delicious, affordable, terroir driven wines.
David Milligan founded David Milligan Selections in 1995 with the objective of finding great wines from top estates and creating exceptional values for the consumer.
This has been achieved by creating a low overhead operation selling directly on behalf of the estates to importing wholesalers around the country and thus eliminating the National Importer mark up. Drawing on his many years of experience in the United States and in Europe where he was wine buyer for one of the largest wine companies, he has assembled a range of important estates in the main regions of France. In selecting these wines he agrees with the consumer preference for clean, well made wines with emphasis on the natural fruit. He believes that this allows the true character of the soil in each region to express itself. Experts agree that his selections are classic expressions of each appellation. In 2006 he was joined by his son Alexander who spent two years working at Sherry-Lehmann, the prestigious New York retailer.
