Wine For The Weekend: 2013 Les Cliquets Opi d’Aqui

Wine For The Weekend: 2013 Les Cliquets Opi d’Aqui 150 150 David Rosengarten

wine for the weekend

“The weekend? That’s five days away!” PRECISELY! Every Monday from now on I’ll be offering you in this space one of the amazing, food-loving wines I’ve chosen to import (after significant globe-scouring)!
The wine will take a few days to arrive at your house—so order now, and next weekend’s parties are set! Please note: I will also continue to recommend great wines to you that are not my imports…every Friday, right here, on WINE FRIDAY!

 

2013 Les Cliquets Opi d’Aqui, Languedoc, France ($19)

opi_cliquets_1_1I have a very strong emotional attachment to this wine!

I found it about two years ago, at an organic wine fair in Montpellier. It was the wine of the morning, for me, among hundreds of wines: a luscious, fruity, lightly structured, 100% Grenache that had undergone carbonic maceration. I immediately introduced myself to the winemaker and told him I wanted to import this wine into the U.S.

A few hours later, a French friend from NY told me that Alain Coumont, who founded Le Pain Quotidien in Belgium (before his move worldwide), was in attendance. “Did you ever meet him?” she asked. I hadn’t. She said: “let’s go! He’s on the other side of the convention hall.”

As we approached Alain, it was déja vu all over again. He was standing at the Opi d’Aqui booth, next to the winemaker I’d gushed at several hours before. And it was there I discovered that the founder of Le Pain Quotidien…is also the owner of this great winery. We became fast friends and made a fast deal: I became sole American importer of this fantastic wine…AND I now sell it to Le Pain Quotidien in the U.S.!

I was so happy…because this is exactly the type of red wine for which I scour the world. I call it “bistro wine”—merry, easy-to-drink stuff that turns any meal into a party at the center of the universe. It does come from a region, Languedoc, known for richer, heartier reds—but the young generation of winemakers there is making lots of red with a technique borrowed from the Beaujolais region, which lightens the wines. However, since these are southern-grown grapes—the wines also have a richer structure to them than Beaujolais!

The vintage I fell in love with was 2012…but the just-arrived 2013 is even better! As before, a beautiful light ruby in the glass. Amazing nose! The strawberries are unmistakeable, and the cherries…and a whiff of cherry eau-de-vie! Wonderfully juicy in the glass, with a tang reminiscent of cranberry juice. Great, refreshing acidity. Medium body, with no more than a tiny hint of tannin in the finish. Unusually low in alcohol for a southern red…only 12.5 %. This combination of low alcohol, jumpy acidity, lack of tannin and singing fruit makes this an incredible food wine! I see it at picnics. With fish. With charcuterie. With any grilled or roasted meat you can imagine. It would even be lovely with goat cheese (like chèvre), or hard cheese like Parmigiano-Reggiano. But my advice is this: don’t sip it! Gulp it!…at a degree or two below room temperature!

If you live in the NY area and would like to get a taste with other wine buffs, we’re hosting tastings soon at Le Pain Quotidien locations around the city! Les Cliquets is also available by the glass, anytime, at all NYC Le Pain Quotidien restaurants.

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