I am slightly dissapointed that my first wine blog post is for an inexpensive, mass-produced vintage, but it's what I'm drinking, and I would guess a lot of other people are drinking it too.
I first learned about the Rex-Goliath Vin De Pays D'Oc Pinot Noir from my wife's aunt. She is studying to be a sommelier, currently works in a wine shop, and hopes to run a travel service that conducts tours of the Italian wine country. In other words, she has an appreciation for wines and a more refined palate than mine. She described a memorable experience for her. She and her husband picked up the Rex-Goliath Pinot Noir for it's normal $7. They took it home and found it was not the same as past bottles. They couldn't sort out what the difference was at first, but then they discovered that they had picked up the Rex-Goliath California Pinot Noir. In their experience, the Rex-Goliath California Pinot was not very good, but that the Vin De Pays D'Oc Pinot was excellent at the price point.
My wife and I are not wine experts and do not have a large cellar of wine. Even so, we enjoy drinking a good wine with dinner and we've been helped along in appreciating wine by my in-laws, particularly my father-in-law, who has developed a real penchant for fermented grape juice. We tended to lean toward Zinfandel (the red kind) or Cabernet Savignon over a Pinot Noir when choosing a red.
For whatever reason, as time has passed, I've learned to really enjoy a good Pinot Noir. Admittedly, the Rex-Goliath is not the best wine I have ever tasted, but for the price it is quite good. Regarding price, if you can find it on sale, you can buy a 750 ml bottle for as little as five dollars. A more typical price is between 7 and 9 dollars retail.
This Vin de Pays is not sweet, not dry. It's not overly fruity, but has a good balanced flavor. Try it.
My next post in the wine journal will be on 2007 River Road Pinot Noir Reserve Selection (Russian River Valley).
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