My Dad’s birthday is this week and I’ve decidded to write a number of posts about him and his relationship to wine and how I got started being interested in wine. My Dad is somewhat of a sweet wine afficionado. For his birthday, I usually get him a sweet wine or maybe a special digestif like an Armagnac. This one was a Vin Doux Naturel from Maury, Le Coume du Roy. Maury is a French town near the Spanish border in the Languedoc-Roussillon. The climate is hot and the soil in this area is black schist

Some 90% of France’s VDN come from this region, according to Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson’s “The Concise World Atlas of Wine.” La Coume du Roy is a very old winery in the town of Maury, founded in 1850. The sixth generation is now managing the winery. The current owners are Agnès and Jean-François Bachelet who work to preserve the tradition and learning of the previous generations. They make vins doux naturels and Muscat de Rivesaltes.

Made from Grenache Blanc and aged in an old 228 liter barrel for six years before bottling, the wine is enveloping with dried fruit, nuts, and spicy notes on the nose and palate. We drink it while we watch the evening news together on Sundays. I cherish these Father-Daughter moments. I love sharing great sweet wines with him and this one fits the bill.