A wine company with the name “Mau” would probably induce much merriment among
Thai people. As almost everyone knows around here, in Thai the word means
“drunk”, provided you pronounce it with a short vowel to rhyme with “cow”.
An
Yvon Mau vineyard, in Languedoc Region of Southern France.
Actually, few people would drink wine for the sole purpose of becoming
intoxicated, especially in Europe. In any case, there are much cheaper ways of
getting stoned. Wine is woven into the fabric of European culture and it’s not
just a drink for special occasions. In many countries and especially in France,
Italy and Spain, many people would consider a meal incomplete without wine, even
if it’s just a bottle of cheap plonk to enhance the food. It takes its place on
the table as naturally as salt and pepper.
For a variety of social and economic reasons, drinking is in decline in many
European countries, yet among wine consumers, the French still seem to be top of
the list. In 1897, in the curiously-named French town of Gironde-sur-Dropt, the
Yvon Mau wine-trading company was founded. These days, you can find Yvon Mau
wines in 160 countries, yet its headquarters remain in the same town in which it
was established over a hundred years ago.
Yvon Mau Colombard-Chardonnay 2009, (white) France
(Friendship, Bt. 480)
This dry, white wine comes from the Côtes de Gasgogne, or what the British
prefer to call Gascony. The British are notorious for their penchant for
anglicising any foreign names that they can’t be bothered trying to pronounce.
Although you don’t see the word “Hock” very often these days, it used to be
common in the wine trade to describe Rhein wines. It’s an anglicised version of
the German word Hochheimer, meaning “from the town of Hochheim”. In nineteenth
century Britain, the word “Hock” was used indiscriminately to describe virtually
any German wine. Sherry of course, is a corruption of “Jerez” and even the word
“plonk” is a mispronunciation of the French word blanc (white), as in vin blanc.
The Côtes de Gasgogne is a large area of South-West France that stretches from
the wine region of Bordeaux right down to the Spanish border. It’s famous for
the brandy known as Armagnac and is also the home to that horror of all
vegetarians, fois gras.
So let’s get to the wine. (And about time too - Ed.) This one is made from
Colombard blended with 25% Chardonnay. It has a light, clean straw colour and
there’s a delightful fruity and floral aroma of white fruit, peaches, banana
with faint hints of citrus. You’ll notice a soft mouth-feel with plenty of fruit
up-front and a lovely zesty dash of acidity that fairly tingles in the mouth.
It’s a medium-bodied wine, with peaches and vanilla on the palate and there’s a
very long dry finish with hints of lemon. With just 11.5% alcohol content, this
is a really well-made wine and the tingly freshness would make it a fun
apéritif.
Yvon Mau Merlot 2009, (red) France (Friendship, Bt. 480)
This attractive wine comes from much farther to the east. The Aude is an area in
the South of France adjoining the Mediterranean. It’s part of
Languedoc-Roussillon; a land surrounded by hills and mountains which reaches
down to the foothills of the Pyrenees. This wine is a vin de pays (country wine)
so it’s a step up from ordinary table wine.
It’s a pleasing ruby red with a sweet aroma of red cherries, raspberry jam, a
touch of spice and some distant woodland smells. There’s plenty of ripe berry
fruit on the taste, a very soft clean mouth-feel and virtually no tannin to
speak of, although a little comes through on the long, dry herby finish. This
smooth, easy-drinker is light-to-medium bodied with only a subtle hint of
sweetness.
If you can imagine a scale from zero to ten (in which ten is the sweetest), I’d
put this wine in about number two. Unlike many dry reds that seem to demand
food, this is an easy quaffer (it’s only 12.5% alcohol) and is friendly enough
to go it alone. But oh dear, what a drab label! Never mind; just tip the whole
lot into a decanter and give the wine a good airing at the same time.
