Pale lemon with an abundance of small bubbles.
Smell
Apples and green straw, with some floral notes & a growing presence of apple cider (probably due to the slight yeasty influence of aging on lees).
Taste
Dry & quite acidic with a light body. Apples are the signature flavour of the Mauzac grape, so it's no surprise this tastes a bit like apples! Otherwise, it's easy drinking, but pretty bland. The highlight is a delicate & creamy mousse, with a persistent finish. The mousse is almost like trying to stop a coke bottle from fizzing over by sticking it in your mouth. As long as it doesn't come out your nose, it's a good thing.
Tale
Good: As a Blanquette de Limoux NV, this wine must contain at least 90% Mauzac, a grape that is essentially extinct outside of the Limoux region. The other 10% can be made up of more Mauzac, Chardonnay or Chenin Blanc, both of which can make outstanding sparkling wines by themselves. These Blanquettes are always produced according to Methode Traditionnelle, the same method as in Champagne, which involves the wine maturing in bottle with dead yeast cells to add complexity & biscuity characters.
Bad: The bottle proudly states that the wine is named after 'the 12th century church, L'Eglise Saint Martin, in Limoux - the French town famous for creating the world's first sparkling wine in 1531.' In terms of history & a story behind the wine, it may as well be named 'Carrefour Express - Blanquette de Limoux', after the local supermarket in Limoux, as this wine has nothing to do with the old church.
Ugly: The wine appears to have no website or winery to speak of, however it is imported by the Woolies' liquor company (Pinnacle Drinks) & according to the bottle, it was produced by Jean-Claude Mas, the chief winemaker of Domaines Paul Mas, also in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of Southern France. Being named after a supermarket may be more fitting after all...
Conclusion: Having dealt with the elephant in the wine glass, this is a perfectly acceptable & quite refreshing sparkling wine, but if you want something that looks impressive & will impress friends, the ladies & the gents bold enough to admit they love bubbles, then I strongly recommend spending another $5 & grabbing a cracking Frexinet Cava!
Price: $15
Quality: ☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆☆
www.paulmas.com/?lang=en
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_729982
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