Found it, bought it, awaiting delivery!

I'm am happy to announce that I have found the amazingly herbally goodness that is the 2002 Pierre et Marie Paul Dumazet, Cuvee Charlemagne at a LOCAL wineshop no less! The wine shop, Red White and Bleu from Falls Church, was nice enough to find a distributor and order it for me (no minimum # of bottles either). I ended up getting a great discount since they're trying to sell off the vintage. The distributor had 22 bottles left. I took a case at $29 a bottle and on top of that I received a 10% case discount from the wine shop!

Oh joyeous day callooh callay!

Inn at Little Washington... worth the expense for the wine alone :)

So my husband and I decided to visit the Inn at Little Washington for our 5 year wedding anniversary. The Inn did not disappoint. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Inn it's located in Washington, VA and is known for it's amazing service, presentation, creative menu and hefty price tag.... oh yea and the wine's good too. ;)

I opted for the 7 course tasting menu with wine pairing and was glad I did. Their sommelier was the most knowledgeable I've ever met. She not only explained the nose, taste, region, and varietals... she went as far as discussing the soil consistency. How would she know that you ask? Because she's been there! Oh yes, no joke... I think she's been to almost every vineyard on that menu. Her descriptions of the wines were SPOT on and everything from "peaches, apricots, and butter" to "grassy, dirty, animally".

There were two wines in particular that stood out like they were in a completely different category from anything I've ever tasted. The first one was the 2004 Feudi San Gregorio (Fiano di Avellino) Pietracalda from Campania, Italy. The nose was robust with a hint of pears and a sweet brightness to it. The taste was evenly balanced and smooth... not overly acidic. It had a hint of herbs, peaches and pears. They paired this wine with wild greenlip mussels baked with herb butter and perfumed with pernod. It was indeed a heavenly combination.

The second wine had to be HANDS DOWN the best wine I've ever had in my entire life and I can't find it ANYWHERE. It's the 2002 Pierre et Marie Paul Dumazet (Cornas), Cuvee Charlemagne, from Rhone, France. The nose was minty, yes minty... and kind of barnyardy. It tasted like I was biting into an herb garden. No joke... the complexity was intense. They paired this with a pan seared pekin duck breast on red wine risotto with carmelized endive and foie gras "croutons".

All in all... the inn was amazing and I highly recommend everyone to go there at least once in there lives. If not for the food.... do it for the wine!