What's in My Glass Wednesdays! 2009 Jurancon Sec by Domaine Castera

Jurancon is a region in France that specializes in Gros Manseng and Petit Manseng wine blends (white wines).  Jurancon is located in southern France: 

(Map from Google Images)

We decided on a wine from this region as one of our anniversary wines.  We were doing a "remember when" celebration and as I did some work on Petit Manseng, I thought it would be fun to try a table wine from where it orginated: Jurancon!

(Photos by author)

2009 Jurancon Sec by Domaine Castera!

The D-2010 Scale 

2009 Jurancon Sec by Domaine Castera (Jurancon, France)

Appearance (10 points possible): straw yellow color, clear - 10 points

Aroma/Bouquet (20 points possible): Chalky, gardenia, slight yeast character, honeysuckle, and additional floral aromas. - 17 points

Taste (10 points possible):  Medium viscosity when the wine enters the palate, but wine is quite sour. Bright, crisp citrus flavors with a strong mineral character.  Wine is quite "angular" (get all body in the back corners of the palate).  There's no structure in the front palate and mid-palate falls short.  A touch of sweetness and bitterness in the finish (that may be due to the higher - 14% - alcohol for this white), and lingering floral character. - 7 points

Balance (5 points possible): The wine isn't well balanced.  There is a strong acidic character and all the body is forced to the back of the palate before the finish. - 3 points

Finish (5 points possible):  Finish is slightly sweet and slightly bitter, probably from the alcohol.  Lingers for a long time with a strong floral note. - 4 points

Packaging *Introduction to the D-2010 Scale*

Quality of Package (5 points possible):  Glass quality is made for basic table wines.  Bottled with a Nomacorc (synthetic). - 3 points

Label Marketability (10 points possible):  A traditional lower-end French label.  Really, I only grabbed this bottle because I saw the "Jurancon" word in big letters.  It caught my eye! - 6 points

Other (5 points possible): Well, ok... no extras, so I guess we'll take some points away in this category (not that making good wines is all about the package, but still, it counts!).  I do, however, like the shiny words on this label, so I'll give it an extra point for that! - 2 points

Total Points: 82 points

Overall Thought: I think this is a relatively fair score for this bottle of wine.  There's some very cool character in this wine - the minerality and the floral characteristics make this wine very interesting.  But I was disappointed by how sharp the acid was in this wine, which really drew the quality down.  However, a great table wine - great with dinner and filled with memories.

Food Pairings:  We paired this with Thai food, but it'd be good with a number of spicy foods or fatty foods that really need to take the edge off of all the fat (thanks to the acid).  This may also be good with seafoods, like oysters because of how refreshing the acid is in this wine.

Cost: $18

Splurge Factor (out of 4): 2 - A little pricey for the quality, but honestly I would recommend a purchase.  It was worth a change in taste and flavor.

Where to buy:  Again, I found this at the local wine and spirits store.... as always these days!