Getting Ready for #LanguedocDay 2014

This Friday, May 30, is #LanguedocDay. "Every wine has its day," your boss may comment when denying your request the day off to honor this wine from Southern France. True enough--many wines to have their own hashtagged day to call attention to the merits of the particular wine. I can't manage to participate in all the days for the wines I enjoy, but when I was asked to host a #LanguedocDay gathering, I readily jumped on the opportunity.

our starting lineup for #LanguedocDay

I've enjoyed a few of Languedoc's food-friendly whites. The Saint-Peyre Picpoul-de-Pinet is one of my main go-to value whites, at around $10 a bottle, it's hard to beat. Great with light seafood and pasta dishes. I suspect my frequent tweeting about the merits of this one is one reason the #LanguedocDay folks reached out to me about hosting. Languedoc's earthy red wines also appeal to my taste, though I don't have one particular Languedoc red I gravitate toward.

While I know Languedoc has some very good wine at reasonable prices, I don't come into this event with deep knowledge of the area. Part of the fun of jumping into a wine day like this is getting more acquainted with a region. Understanding more about the terroir of a region, including its designated appellations, helps to put a particular bottle in context. To get ready, I've been perusing this LanguedocAdventure.com site, shared by Boston's own "Languedoc Lady" Jo-Ann Ross, to learn more about the AOC Languedoc and its various appellations. Some of these, like AOC Corbieres and AOC Minervois, are areas I know of but didn't necessarily associate as being part of Languedoc. I also found the map of the region included in an overview post from Wine Folly to be helpful.

Our plan for #LanguedocDay: I've invited a group of friends that appreciate good wine and enjoy trying new ones to gather for the day. Several of us will be live tweeting our observations, including fellow blogger Jennifer from Vino Travels. We'll be sampling these wines sent by the event organizers:

2012 Domaine Felines Jourdan Picpoul-de-Pinet

2012 Saint-Peyre Picpoul-de-Pinet

2013 Chateau de Lancyre Rosé

2011 Jacques de la Judgie Minervois

For me, food and wine go together. So as we sample our Languedoc wines, we'll be nibbling on some food to go along with the vino. I've done a bit of reading about food from the region, but have concluded I don't quite have the 24 hours or so necessary to make cassoulet. So rather than trying to do authentic dishes for the region, I think I'll settle for food that ought to go well with the wine. I've got the menu more-or-less formulated, stay tuned for the post-event food details and a report on how it worked with the wine!

pesto & picpoul make a nice pairing!

How you can participate: You don't need a special invitation to participate in #LanguedocDay 2014! Simply head to your local wine shop and grab a bottle or two of wines from the region, and sample it with some friends on Friday. If you're on Twitter, be sure to share your comments with the hashtag #LanguedocDay, and follow that hashtag stream to see what others are sampling and saying about the wine. You can also share your comments here and over on my Facebook page, where I'll be looking to hear what friends are saying about the wine. The event organizers have prepared this one pager for the day that you can check out and share.

One final tip for the day--check out this video on how to pronouce Languedoc and learn what it means! However you say it, I hope you get a chance to enjoy some good wine from Languedoc this Friday or some time soon. Cheers!