Review: Ferraton Père & Fils, Samorëns

Friends often ask me how they can become more knowledgeable about wine. Most often, they’re interested in becoming more confident with picking a wine from a wine list or at a wine shop. My advice typically includes a suggestion to pick a wine region they like and focus on learning more about that region. Otherwise it can become overwhelming and paralyzing with all the options available.

One of my favorite regions, and a great region for bargain hunters, is the Rhône wine region from France. It’s a region that offers impressive red, white and rose wines, and while the top wines from the region can be quite expensive there are also plenty of deals to be found.

There is certainly some variety within the Rhône region too with a number of different named AOCs, many of which command premium prices. But there is also a significant amount of wine sold with the Côtes du Rhône AOC designation, which can include grapes from anywhere within the boundaries of the region, and as such this is where many of the best deals can be found.

When it comes to red wines from Rhône, those made in Northern Rhône are made with Syrah as the dominant grape in the blend while those from Southern Rhône are made with Grenache as the dominant grape. Although the Côtes du Rhône designation allows grapes from any part of Rhône, they typically only have grapes from Southern Rhône.

This particular Côtes du Rhône red comes from Ferraton Père & Fils, a fairly big sized producer in the region with an annual production of about 350,000 bottles. They produce both estate grown wines and négociant wines, for which they source the grapes from other growers. This bottle being an example of the latter.

The Samorëns line of wines comes in red, white and rosé. This, obviously, is the red, made from a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Cinsault.

Spices and berries, that’s what the nose of this wine is all about. It offers exotic aromatics, with cedar, leather, allspice, blackberry and raspberry. The mouthfeel is magnificently silky and the flavors are bright with lively raspberry, blackberry, coffee and spice notes. The finish is quite long with fresh berry and spice flavors.

Wine: Ferraton Père & Fils, Côtes du Rhône, Samorëns Rouge
Variety: 85 % grenache, 10% syrah, 5% cinsault
Vintage: 2017
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 88
Price: $16.00
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.