Château Champ des Soeurs Fitou Bel Amant 2005 Tasting Notes

The Champ des Soeurs Fitou Bel Amant is a Grenache, Carignan and Mourvèdre blend, notable for what I call integration; it has harmony and a solid direction. The wine has an arc—a vehicle—of purposeful acidity through its entire process, which includes a fine finish. The fruit on the nose includes what I call “deep plum,” with cassis, blackberry, strawberry and distinct black pepper. On the palate, red fruit like strawberry and raspberry take the lead, with touches of sour cherry and prune, overtones of thyme and mountain laurel, and that pepper again. I've already mentioned the tannins; though soft, they are yet sustained, weaving a fugue with the acidity, the fruit and the herbaceous elements toward a finish that is as much a statement as an endnote. This being a young wine—the kind you can cellar for five years or more—I decanted a full 24 hours, not an easy task when the aroma takes over the room.

The present political controversy in France involves the 35 hour week, a subject dedicated winemakers like Laurent and Marie Maynadier must laugh at grimly, since their kind of work requires 35 hour days. We wine fanciers, who risk little more than staining a shirt, should thank our lucky stars the vine inspires such dedication, and then order a case of this Fitou for the cellar.