La Font de L'Olivier Carignan Vielilles Vignes VDP des Cotes de Thongue 2004 $15

It may seem like a mouthful; well I guess it is a mouthful. This excellent Carignan from the Languedoc region of France comes from some of the oldest Carignan (the grape) vines in the region - 75 years old in fact. Made by wine maker Bruno Granier, the wine is fashioned for simple, easy drinking, without giving away the cow for free. Some complexity comes from the herbs, fruit and minimal tannin and fresh acidity on the finish. Without any barrel aging, I would guess the wine is fermented in either concrete or stainless steel tanks. La Font de L'Olivier translates to ''The Fountain of Olive Tree''. I love olives and I love this wine.

Day 1 - The color is very dark, almost opaque. In the nose herbs and violets mingle with lots of crushed ripe black raspberry and some mocha notes. On the palate, black cherry, ripe raspberry, and chocolate finish off crisp and clean from the supple tannin and refreshing acidity.

Day 2 - Much better - more of the same but more complex and aromatic. This means I could have decanted it for a little while the first night to help it unfold. Or maybe all it needed was to be gassed (inert layer of gas to seal), re-corked and stored over night in my fridge.

I purchased this wine at "The Green Grape" who specializes in small batch, handcrafted wines mostly from Europe; many at under $20. They have a store near my office in downtown Manhattan (Financial District) and in Brooklyn. They have a great discount on case purchases (15%) and a membership that tracks your purchases and sends you a $20 voucher once you spend $350 to use on future purchases. http://www.greenegrape.com/

I will definitely buy this again!

Cheers!