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d' Autrefois Prestige Pinot Noir France 2017

We are continuing our search for world wine regions with quality wines at value prices.  One such region is Languedoc-Roussillon in southern France.  This is a large wine producing region stretching along the Mediterranean Sea north of the border with Spain.  One third of all wine from France originates from this area but it is not as well known in the US as other regions.  Languedoc has a past history of producing low cost bulk wines, but that is changing.  Because of this history, the region is less prestigious than other regions and wines can be good quality for less money.   Rhone varieties as well as international varieties of grapes are grown in Languedoc.

I love Pinot Noir, especially from the Willamette Valley, Oregon.  The problem is that good quality Pinot Noir is expensive and I do not judge it to be a good use of my resources to spend $30 or more on an ordinary weeknight for a bottle of wine.  So, I am constantly searching for quality Pinot for less than $20.  This led me to try some bottles of Pinot Noir from Languedoc.

Pinot Noir is not the most produced wine from Languedoc, but I found several bottles at Total Wine.   d'Autrefois produces three winery direct Pinots for Total Wine.  The Prestige Pinot Noir is the highest priced at $19.99 but this week it is on sale for $14.99.  We found the wine to be a complex blend of raspberry and darker fruit.  This is an excellent wine that tastes like 100% Pinot Noir without additives or other grapes blended in to achieve a flavor profile that someone thinks you will like.  In my opinion this is great quality for a reasonable price (especially if you buy it on sale).

SC Wine Joe rating = 91 points



 

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