Picpoul de Pinet, Duc de Morny 2019
It’s the weekend and you’re looking for something to go with your fish dish. Or perhaps it’s a Wednesday and you just fancy something refreshing to drink on its own. Either way, you’d quite like a change from Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio, so how about a Picpoul de Pinet?
Picpoul de Pinet is produced in the Languedoc region of southern France, close to Montpellier, where the Picpoul (Piquepoul Blanc) grapes that are used to make the wine can enjoy the area’s wonderful sunshine and the cooling maritime influences of the nearby Bassin de Thau (Thau Lagoon) and the Mediterranean Sea. The very name Picpoul de Pinet conjures up summer holidays, seafood restaurants right by the sea, and pure indulgence. Just the ticket for a cold and grey February night. Well, any night in fact!
Lemon-green in colour, the Picpoul de Pinet Duc de Morny is a dry wine, with high acidity. Crisp apple, pear and grapefruit aromas on the nose with pleasant hints of acacia and blossom, and flavours of crunchy apples, grapefruit and melon, with a touch of tangy, saline minerality on the palate. This is a well-balanced wine with medium alcohol, medium (+) body, and a long finish.
The Thau Lagoon is the most important site for shellfish cultivation along the Mediterranean coast and so not surprisingly, Picpoul de Pinet from the neighbouring vineyards is a perfect match for oysters. But not being in the South of France, we settled for grilled mackerel and it paired very well. The fresh, lively acidity cut through the oily richness of the mackerel, and the wine and the fish were a textbook accompaniment for each other. It is also perfectly fine by itself.
Sandhams Wine Merchants £9.49