Yes, this is another Domaine des Lampyres wine. Deal with it. As I’ve said before, I’m slowly making my way through as much of their range as I can. This one I picked up on what was evidently ‘international orange wine day’ or some such. So, yes, another orange wine. No, I didn’t drink it on international orange wine day. Obviously.
It’s Malvosie / Malvoisie, which is an unusual grape, on which more below. And I like the name Janseniste, which calls to mind the Jansenist movement, of which Blaise Pascal was a member.
François-Xavier Dauré of Domaine des Lampyres tells me the name refers to be a person who is very precise, and so the wine is about precision and perfection for him.
In the glass
Clear, bright. Medium to medium-plus. OK, I’ll confess. It may have been the light or something, but when I first poured some into the glass, my reaction was ‘Oh! Concentrated wee!’ I don’t know why. I mean, colour-wise, under the right conditions, yes. But ‘wee’? Why that word sprung to mind instead of of the more usual ‘pee’ or the slightly more sophisticated ‘urine,’ I’ll never know. But it did. And now I can’t get it out of my head.
That’s probably not the sort of colour you want to read about in regards to wine, so let’s go with ‘orange-y.’ That’s the best my brain could come up.
The nose
Once again, nothing. I sniffed it upon opening. I sniffed it once it warmed up, and had been open a bit. Still nothing. I sniffed it here, I sniffed it there. I sniffed it everywhere. I am the Dr. Seuss of wine. But I couldn’t smell anything.
The palate
Medium body. Green apples. It has a certain ‘bite’ to it. That’s not a term I tend to apply to wines, but it is what comes to mind on this one. It’s a combination of the acidity and tannins, I think.
This is an apple wine. I don’t mean that literally, but my notes are filled with references to apples. Green apples initially, then later on red apples come in. There are apple skins on the finish. When it has warmed up a bit, I get a hint of peach as well.
I can’t decide to what to make of it, apart from ‘I quite like it.’ Don’t get me wrong; it’s a very nice wine. I just am having a harder time than usual writing what most people would consider an acceptable tasting note.
There are no grapefruits or plums to be found anywhere.
Goes well with food. After my initial tasting, I had more with dinner, a spinach and feta pie, and that was a good pairing.
Rating
Yummy-plus overall, Pretty on the visuals.
I really like this wine. What bothers me is that I can’t completely explain why. I Coravin-ed some for the initial tasting. Later, I had another glass with dinner. And then just pulled the cork and had some more. That’s a decent barometer of my thoughts on it, I think.
Sustainability
They pretty much do it all. Organic, vegan, sustainable farming. Low-intervention, low amount of added sulphites. The works.
The technical info and such
12 % ABV. Malvosie. £34.99 from Cambridge Wine Merchants.
The other stuff
A note on the grape. It’s Malvoisie, not to be confused with Malvasia. As for what Malvoisie is, most places agree that it’s a synonym for other grapes, such as Pinot Gris, and is a name used in the Savoie region of France. Jancis Robinson, et al. in their Wine grapes: a complete guide to 1368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours, says Malvoisie is just Malvasia, which in turn is just a bunch of different grapes.
So, in other words – it’s made out of some sort of grape. Probably.