Join us tomorrow, Friday March 25 from 6-8pm at the wine store to taste Mas de Martin’s 2006 Cuvée Roi Patriote, a red from France’s Languedoc region, along with La Quercia’s Prosciutto Rosso and some olives from Provisions’s olive bar.

A Wine to Guard

Though delayed gratification brings great rewards in wine, it is often no match for the seductive power of its evil twin, instant gratification. Perhaps this is why the French refer to a wine that can benefit from substantial aging as a ‘vin de garde’ which literally translated means “wine to guard.”

Recently we took a call from an importer asking if we were interested in a ‘vin de garde’ that he had cellared since release three years ago under perfect aging conditions in a temperature- and humidity-controlled warehouse. Excited by a shot at outsourced self-restraint, we immediately made an appointment to taste the wine and loved it so much we offered to buy it all. This, in turn, made the importer so happy that he gave us an excellent price. A win:wine situation, if you will.

The current vintage for Languedoc reds is 2009 (soon to be 2010) so we’re thrilled to offer a little blast from the past, the 2006 Mas de Martin Cuvee Roi Patriote. Built to age, this powerful red combines Chateauneuf-du-Pape grapes Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre with Bordeaux varieties Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in a voluptuous wine with an aromatic nose of wild herbs and black olives and concentrated black berry fruit. A wine of this structure and quality will even improve over the next 3-5 years. That is, if you can wait that long.

At original price, this wine would go on our shelves at $25. But for the next week, we’re offering Mas de Martin’s Cuvée Roi Patriote 2006 at $19.75 a bottle ($17.78/bottle for 12 bottles or more). Limited supply, when it’s gone, it’s gone. To order, call us at (718) 797-9463.