My Sommelier Exam & The EXEM Answer

There is a portion of the sommelier exam where you are asked to pair specific wines with a random (and typically esoteric) dish. I had prepped with my 2 mentors for several culinary classics - escargot, clam soufflee, beef burguneon, etc. What did I get? Roasted lamb with rubarb reduction. Huh?

 Not only had I never considered putting what I assume is a sweet fruity style sauce on top of roasted anything, but I knew what it needed was an old world classic. Unfortunately, sitting in front of me is the Master Sommelier whose business card should read "Old World Super Expert". For a split second I paniced - but then I remembered a little wine I had while volunteering at the wine shop - Exem 2010 Bordeaux.

This wine is a breath of fresh air to a dirty, dusty, old and famous wine region - Bordeaux. At only $13 dollars, it is an excellent wine to jump in and explore a region whose pricetag typically deters everyday wine lovers from exploring.

Red Bordeaux wines are almost all blends featuring:
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Merlot
- Cabernet Franc
- Petit Verdot
- & Malbec (Yes! Malbec is from France!)

The Bordeaux region is divided into 3 main growing areas by the Gironde Estuary. Knowing what part of Bordeaux your wine comes from is key to knowing what mix of these grapes are in your wine:

Left Bank: Cabernet Sauvignon based & typically the most expensive & famous wines.
Entre-Deux-Mers: Translated to "Between Two Seas", this landlocked penninsula mostly makes dry white wines made with Sauvignon Blanc & Semillion.
Right Bank: Merlot based wines featuring earthy characteristics. For the most part, wines labed "Bordeaux" with no specific villiage name come from this part of the region.
 
 Our Exem, although labeled simply "Bordeaux" wine, actually comes from a single vinyard site within a the Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux AOC which is located in the southwestern corner of Entre-Deux-Mers. It is made in the style of the Right Bank featuring 70% Merlot & 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. As if you could pack more value into a $13 dollar wine, this vinyard is also sustainably farmed.

Like I mentioned at the beginning, this wine is a fresh new version of a classic region and is very much made in the "New World" style of featuring dense ripe fruit such as black cherry & plum. While it features some of the classic herb notes like thyme, they are more reminisant of fresh herbs and lacks the green "new wood" like flavors that can be offputting to American wine lovers.

Still, by far the best quality of this wine was the feeling of victory when my Bordeaux expert proctor had to ask how to spell it.

Boo ya! Value Wine WIN!