Wine Tasting at Le Bouquet Wine Shop

This past weekend I went to a wine tasting at wine shop Le Bouquet in the beautiful town of Leiden. The shop is owned by a mother & daughter team and they focus on organic, biodynamic and natural wines. The tasting showcased white, red, rosé and sparkling wines from France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

The tasting started with a Pét-Nat rosé made from Gamay and Loin de l'Oeil grapes. I’ve had Gamay bubbles plenty of times, but the Loin de l'Oeil was new to me. It likely added some freshness and a touch of honey. It was a beautiful wine, especially for the €19 price.

Next I tried some white wines of which the highlights for me was the Domaine Perriere La Petite Sauvignon Blanc from Loire, a Greco di Tufo from Italy and a stunning Riesling from Marc Josten in Germany. The Riesling had just a touch of sweetness to balance the acidity and all the intense aromas and flavors I have come to expect from the grape.

The red wines were up next and they ranged from Syrah and Cabernet to Nebbiolo and Cabernet Franc. My top picks in this section were a Cabernet/Cab Franc blend (no surprise there if you know of my Sonoma wine tasting roots) from Spain, the Nebbiolo from Italy and a Grenache and Carignan blend from France. These wines ranged from funky to classic characteristics and that made it even more interesting. As we head into hibernation season (my favorite time of year), I love opening a bottle of red wine and seeing it evolve in the glass over several hours. A couple of these bottles will be opened this winter for exactly that purpose.

Lastly, I finished up with an incredible Crémant de Bourgogne crafted entirely of Chardonnay. An absolute winner, especially at the €24.50 price. It’s no secret that Chardonnay is my favorite variety and I look for it in all different iterations, and I always gravitate towards it for sparkling too.

There are a lot of interesting things about wine tasting and buying wine here. At the top of the list is the variety of grapes that are available. Coming from wine regions that generally only showcase only a few varieties, it definitely is eye-opening to taste wines that are so unique and different from what I am used to.

I also must mention the pricing and how accessible wine is for nearly everyone. It’s not uncommon for tastings in Oregon and California to cost $40, $50 or even $100 in the famed Napa Valley. That is definitely not attainable for everyone.

And then there is the cost of the wines. For instance, while you can obtain a decent quality Pinot Noir in Oregon for around $25, that isn’t a typical price. Most wineries and wine shops have their starting Pinot Noir around $35-40 and they go up very quickly from there. At different points in my wine career, I have sold many wines that retail for over $100, including the very first winery I worked at nearly 20 years ago. And while there is obviously a market for them, it does seem quite exclusive, don’t you think?

In the Netherlands I have been able to find many wines under €10 that I have enjoyed. All the wines on this tasting last weekend were under €35. There is something special about having incredible wine available at prices that an average person can justify. It truly is an affordable luxury or maybe it’s just a way of life here. Either way, I’m here for it and I look forward to sharing my journey with you as I explore more European wines and further navigate my way around Dutch wine country.

Cheers!