Description

How does a Sunday afternoon spent with good wine and a plate of terrine sound? Or blue cheese? Or both? How about neither? Well you need to know Muscat de Beaumes de Venise. Sadly it is not on the radar of many wine lovers. But it should be. It is a sweet wine but it has acid, so it cuts through. And this wine has a hint of bitterness which is also invigorating for your palate.

Domaine de Durban was established in 1159. The current owners, the Leydier family, took over this Estate in the mid 1960’s. Hand harvested grapes on the classic terroirs of Muscat de Beaumes de Venise are often used to make one of the best in the appellation due to the extraordinary finesse and balance they manage to consistently deliver.

So pretty on the nose. Pears, apricot, white flowers, delicate and powerful all at once. The palate is quite silky and zesty acid keeps it clean and fresh. There is a lot of complexity underneath some obvious and bold flavours. Serve as an aperitif or with blue cheese. No need to age this one.

Service

I would avoid getting this icy cold but any other temperature between that and room temp will do the job.

Food Matches

Terrine, figs, blue cheese, as an aperitif or on its own.

Muscat de Beaumes de Venise

A sweet, fortified wine in the southern Rhone. This is a famous wine for its freshness and beauty. It is a great alternative to Sauternes or heavy fortified wines.

Muscat Of Alexandra/Moscatel

The same variety that makes Moscato d’Asti, Muscat Beaumes de Venice and Australian Muscat. The naturally high sugar and acid in the grape made it a robust and therefore popular wine before sanitation was properly understood. The balance and highly aromatic nature of the grape makes it a beautiful variety for sweeter wines.