2023 was the year where I introduced a French white wine into my Christmas Mexican household. For the last couple of years, I’ve been given the task of making at least thirty pounds of tamales, but my flight was delayed in Dallas, Texas, coming back home to Los Angeles and I ended up only making the last five pounds of tamales de frijoles negros con elote (black beans with corn). I opened a Chenin Blanc from France that I brought back from Louisville, Kentucky, because I saw two people buy six bottles of it and was curious to know what was it about this wine that made them buy more than one. This wine bottle gave me the energy & inspiration to finish the labor-intensive task required to make tamales. This WineMadrina’s Christmas mantra was Drink the wine, make tamales, be the desmadre.
I shared the bottle with mi madre who does not drink wine y nos pusimos a tamalear (we began to make tamales) and talk about family politics. Tamaleando is another way to describe a bonding moment with a loved one while making tamales and chismeando on the latest family drama. She took the first sip of wine as a tequila shot, I was impressed and later she described it as muy agrio y fuerte pero le gustó porque quiso otra copa. Chenin blanc is naturally a high acidic wine and a wine with high acidity will usually taste crispier and more tart on the palate. We were able to instantly recognize the lemon and citrus that came along with the flavors. Later, mi madre said que se le antojoba algo mas con este vino pero no sabia que (she was craving something with this type of wine but did not know what). Since I had just passed my WSET 1 certification, I knew what would pair well with this chenin blanc, so I opened a bag of Mexican Fritos (limon & sal) and dipped them in cottage cheese. The salt in the Fritos made this wine taste less bitter and less acidic.
So what does a Chenin Blanc Taste Like?
I am still scratching the surface of the French wine world, but some of the common notes found in wines made from chenin blanc are apple (manzana), pear (pera), quince (membrillo), white flowers (flores blancas), and honey (miel). Something to note about French wines is that they are often named after the region and it can get a little confusing when you are a beginner. Particularly, La Lisse Soie D’Ivoire Chenin Blanc is a white wine that is naturally acidic, aged in French oak barrel, and comes from the Languedoc region in southern France. Languedoc is part of the large Mediterranean coastal area now known as the Occitanie region. The climate is Mediterranean with ample sun, low humidity, little rainfall, and moderate temperatures during the growing season. La temperatura y la humedad son elements principales que afectan el sabor y la calidad de las uvas y los winters range from chilly to cold but not too severe. Overall, I now understand why the two people bought more than one bottle of this wine, the price was great ($10.99) for the value of wine, it was very smooth and fresh and I was able to finish the tamales.
Wine Bottle Name: La Lisse Soie D’Ivoire Chenin Blanc
- Grape: Chenin Blanc
- Region: France / Vin de Pays / Pays d’Oc / Haute Valle de I’Aude
- Wine Style: Languedoc-Roussillon White
- Alcohol Content: 13%
- Medium Bodied
- Dry
- Medium Acidity
- Flavors: Lightly honeyed, green apple, lemon.
WineMadrina 