Very cool wine bar in Beziers - Le Chameau Ivre

My favourite place in Beziers is Le Chameau Ivre, a wonderful wine shop and Tapas bar which is owned by Philippe Catusse.

The selection of local wines is good but the most striking feature here is the esoteric range of wines from outside the L-R and the traditional triumvirate of Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne. The Loire is a speciality, both white and red and, should one feel inclined, one can buy several vintages of Cotat Chavignol (a wonderfully traditional Sancerre that rewards ageing in bottle). Also on offer are magnums of Jurancon, an enticing selection of Austrian wines and a good range of sherries. And lots, lots more.

For those who don't get quite so turned on by these esoteric offerings, I can recommend it as a good stop for a light lunch. The choice of wines by the glass is significantly better than the sorry offerings one finds in most restaurants here. Definitely no paris goblets either.

Saint Aphrodise - white wine awards

Good red wines abound in the Languedoc but it is trickier to find a really good white. The Saint Aphrodise concours, held in Beziers every year, aims to address this as it is a wine competition for white wines only. I was part of a 4 strong MW team who was invited along to help judge nearly 200 white wines which came from all over the Languedoc. 

There were several prizes awarded and, although we didn't always agree with our fellow judges, here are a couple of the winners worth seeking out.

The MW prize went to a 2008 Viognier Vin de Pays d'Oc from Domaine St Martin des Champs in Murviel les Beziers. This had an enticing minerally nose and a lovely rich mouthfeel with flavours of peach and clove. It also won the gong for the best vin de pays d'oc.

An lively, nettle and passion fruit Sauvignon Blanc from Domaine la Madeleine St Jean in Marseillan was selected by the Tables Gourmandes panel as a great restaurant wine.

The top prize for the St Aphrodise trophy is selected at public tastings around Beziers this week. The kick off is between Chardonnay 2008 from Domaine de la Croix Belle in Puissalicon and the Cuvée Point du Jour Chardonnay Viognier from Domaine Izard in Montady. So head on over to Beziers (La Maison des Vins, Beziers or Les Caves Paul Riquet) toot sweet to have your say!

photo courtesy of pdphoto.org